Headlong
by Kasman
Summary: Post VS3 - pre-Blessings adventure. M-L of course. Updated!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:**  Dark Angel belongs to whoever owns it these days and not to me, alas.  This story, however, is all mine!

**A/N:**  Many thanks to alaidh and catherder for the beta.  This is the updated version!!

Chapter 1 

"I'll miss you."  Max's voice was small.  They were huddled in a secluded corner between the lockers at Jam Pony.  Logan, wearing the exoskeleton, towered over Max, who was awkwardly leaning into his chest.

"Max, I have to do this."  He put one long finger under her chin and directed her face up to look him in the eyes.

"I know."  Her voice sounded strange to her.  "It's just…"

"I'll be careful."

"Heard that one before," she responded sarcastically.

Original Cindy came around the locker, but promptly backed off when she saw them, and bumped into Sketchy.  She gave the lanky messenger a warning look.  "Out, fool."

"Hey, I'm not the fool here.  You were there first."

Cindy raised a hand to smack him, then pushed by as Normal called out, "Where the fire truck is Max?"

"Give her a minute, Normal."  She looked back over her shoulder.

Max gave a watery smile, hearing the voices and pulled Logan infinitesimally closer.  Their eyes locked for a moment and she sighed, dropping her head to his chest again.  She breathed in his masculine scent, then took his hand from the small of her back and placed it on her belly, where the baby turned somersaults, rolling under his fingertips.  Logan gave a smile of wonder, brushed her hair lightly with his hand, then he was gone.  Max slumped back onto the bench against the wall and sat there.  Original Cindy, seeing Logan leave, came and joined her, putting an arm over Max's shoulder.

Normal's voice could again be heard shouting from the desk.  "Get back to work!  This is not a rest home!  Bip bip bip!"

Max made a choking sound that could have been either a sob or a laugh.

"You okay?" asked Cindy, not sure what to make of it.

Max looked at her enigmatically.  "Not really," she replied.  "Damn hormones."  Max sniffed.

Normal stuck his head around the lockers.  "Get back to work!"

"Hey!  Baby girl's not feelin' so good."  She glared at Normal.

"She's pregnant, not dying!  Get back to work!"

"Keep your shirt on, Normal!" Max snapped back.

Max and Original Cindy exchanged looks and shrugged.

"We'll have lunch," OC said, getting up.

"Yeah, later…"

Max took up her position at the front desk, sliding up on the high stool Normal had provided, and donning the headset.  Her back ached and her heart felt heavy.  She read out a list of runs and handed out some packages, before seeing one with an address she recognized – a clothing store on Melbourne Avenue.  Taking advantage of a moment's inattention from Normal, she stuffed it under the counter thinking, _This one's for me_, before calling out the next run.

Eventually, Normal disappeared into his office, closing the door firmly after him, and she was able to pick up the phone.  "Come on, come on, answer, dammit."  She drummed her fingers on the counter impatiently.

"Hello?"

"Alec?"

"Oh, Max."  Sarcasm dripped down the phone line.  "What's up?"

"Need a favour.  Can you borrow a car?"

"Why?"  he asked suspiciously.  "Where's Logan?  Can't he drive you?"

"Outta town for a few days."

There was a pause.  "Max…"

"Alec, it's perfectly safe.  I just need you to take me somewhere, please?"

"Need me?  That's different.  All right, Max.  I'll see what I can do, but it can't be until later, ok."

"Say around four?  That's when I get off."  She had, so far, sailed through the pregnancy with few problems.  But Normal had put his foot down and shortened her hours.  "I'm not delivering any more babies in the upstairs offices, Missy Miss," had been his latest edict as he chased her out the door the previous day.  She was finishing up the following week anyway, but it was nice to know that underneath Normal's cranky, crusty exterior, there beat an equally cranky, crusty heart.

"Sure.  No problem."

"Later, Alec, and thanks."

"You're welcome, Max.  I enjoy wasting my afternoons on your wild goose chases."

A couple of riders came back from their first runs.  Max quickly checked the worksheets and sent them out again.  She re-rolled the sleeves of Logan's sweater – one she'd "borrowed" from the upper reaches of the closet that morning to ward off the winter chill.  

*~*~*~

Logan drove slowly out of Seattle, queuing his way through the sector points.  Martial law may have been slowly loosening its hold, but that didn't mean the Sector Police weren't still on the take.  He ground his teeth, impatient to be gone, grimacing as he saw the driver of the car ahead of him roughly pulled from the vehicle and cuffed, the car driven into an impromptu impound lot at the side of the road.

Logan donned an impassive expression as his turn came.  He handed over his paperwork and tried to maintain his demeanour while the second cop went round the car, demanding that the hatch be opened.  Heart pounding with relief, he drove through the last few miles of Seattle and into the countryside.

He drove for three hours, stopping only once to fill his growling stomach at a roadside diner.  He could hear the echo of Lydecker's words, "An army marches on its stomach."  He took a room at the hotel designated in the cryptic message, a crumbling old place with orange-painted timber doors, and freshened up while he waited for the call, his gun and cell phone within reach.  He then made himself comfortable on the bed, flicking through a few stations on the old TV set in the corner and wound down from the stress of getting out of town and prepared himself mentally for what was to come.

*~*~*~*

Max and Original Cindy slowly walked through the covered market, looking at this and that and munching on hamburgers.

"Where'd Logan go?"

"He wouldn't tell me."

"Oh-oh, that gotta be bad.  Thought he knew better'n that, boo.  You gonna chase after him?"

"How am I gonna do that?  He didn't tell me where he went – not even the direction, and, well, look at me…can't ride my bike any more coz it's too uncomfortable…can't even go five minutes without going to the bathroom…how am I gonna chase after him?"

"So call him."

"I can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"I gotta try to trust his judgment…"

"And his judgment is stressing you out, sugah.  He want you to have this baby today?"

"OC!"

"What's up with that, boo?  It could happen, ya know."

Max sighed, exasperated.  Here she was trying to convince herself that it would be okay, and her friend was pushing every worry right back at her.  "He'll tell me, sooner or later," she said darkly.

"Yeah, right, when he's pushing up daisies.  Well, don't say you weren't warned."

Max looked around and handed Original Cindy her burger.  "Here, hold this."  She made a bee-line for the bathroom while her friend looked on in amusement.

*~*~*~

Logan was jerked out of a light doze by the insistent ringing of his cell phone.  He answered with a cautious, "Hello."

"You found the place?" asked a gruff voice.

"I found it," he confirmed.

"Got a pen?"

"Yeah, go on."

"Here's what I want you to do…"  The voice dictated a set of complicated directions.  "You got all that?"

"I got it."

"Get moving, son.  I'll see you soon."

"Right."

Logan disconnected the call and thoughtfully tapped the phone against his chin a couple of times before making his move.  He powered up the exoskeleton, shoved his gun and phone in different pockets, grabbed the note with the directions and his keys, and left the room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:**  Need I say it again?  Not mine, never will be.  This story, however, is an entirely different kettle of fish.

**A/N**:  Many thanks to alaidh for the beta…she beta the Aussie out of me pretty darn good, lol.  More thanks to cathderder for her beta as well.  Many thanks to everyone who reviewed.  To say I was totally blown away by the response is an understatement.

**Chapter 2**

Logan was grimly determined as he slowly drove the battered Aztek along the potholed track to its final destination.  The circuitous route seemed to have taken him in a complete circle around the small town in which he was staying, judging by the direction of the setting sun.  He felt some remorse at not having filled Max in about where he was going and who he was meeting, but he also firmly believed it was for her own good.  She'd have worried more if he told her the truth – or insisted on coming – which was even worse.  "_No, I did the right thing."_  He argued furiously with the devil on his shoulder.  "_Anyway, it's too late to worry about it now."_  

_"Call her," the devil answered back.  _

_"No, it's too late.  I'm…there…"_

He slowed the car to a stop outside a battered barn-like structure and turned off the engine.  He waited a few minutes, checking the place out from his seat, before opening the door of the car and getting out.

*~*~*~

Alec waited impatiently in the car outside what seemed to be an old clothing store on Melbourne Avenue.  He could barely see Max through a filthy window as she reached up to hug a huge bear of a man who seemed to be wearing, of all things, an old Jam Pony cap.  _No way…he can't be an old messenger._  He shrugged and slid down further in the seat of his borrowed car, not concerned.  He considered it none of his business what Max did with her free time, even when she dragged him along with her.

*~*~*~

"Jam Pony delivery!" Max called out from the shop counter.  "Got a package here for a Break!"

"Just a minute!" a deep voice called back.  There was a crash and a muffled, "Damn!"  Max grinned and looked around her.  The shop was a clutter of shelves full of shoes and bric-a-brac, and stands of old clothes.  She was pleased to see that Break hadn't changed his political alliances.  There was still a poster in his front window protesting something or other.  "Ban the Bomb…Land Rights for Gay Whales…whatever," she mused, barely under her breath.

"Hey!  Girl's tryin' to earn a living here!" she called out impatiently.

"All right, coming."  A burly giant dressed in a suit and tie came out, dusting his sleeves down, an old Jam Pony cap firmly clamped to his head.  He looked at Max and recognition slowly dawned.  "Max?" he queried in wonder.

"Up close and personal," she responded, with a smile.

He came round the counter with surprising agility for such a big man and enveloped her in a hug.  "You said something about a package.  I take it you don't mean the one you're wearing around your middle."

"Hardly," Max responded dryly.  She handed over the package.  "I wanted to give this to you personally and to say thank you for what you did that day.  Need a signature as well," she said, handing over a small clipboard.  He scribbled in the spot she indicated and handed it back to her.

Break looked over his shoulder as a tall, slim guy with light brown hair came out of the back room and smiled at her without recognition.  Max knew who he was, however, even out of uniform.  Break gestured with his eyes, and the guy disappeared back into the rear of the shop.

"Aw, honey, you don't have to thank me.  Not every day I help a successful escape from Langford."

"Well…you and a couple of others," she said smiling.  "I had a bit of…outside assistance."

Break nodded, "Right."

"Anyway…thanks."

"And you're not going to tell me about this," he gestured at her, "Because it's none of my business."

"Let's just say I had some outside assistance with that, too," she smiled.

"Right."

"Anyway, you're not the only one I helped escape that place."  Break looked over his shoulder.

Max nodded an understanding response.  "Anyway, thanks."

"You're welcome."  Break looked at her consideringly.  He went over to a rack of shelves and rummaged for a few moments, bringing out a cellophane-wrapped parcel.  "Present for Junior." He said.

"That's not necessary."

"No, but I'm doing it anyway."

"Thanks."

"Take care of yourself, Max."

She hugged him again and left the shop.  Max noisily opened the door of the car, waking Alec who had slid so far down in the seat that his head was barely visible above the window frame and had dropped into a light doze.  "Home, James."

"Hmm?  Oh, sure, Max."

"Some watchdog you'd make," she said sarcastically.  "Sleeping on the job like that."

"Whatever."

*~*~*~

Logan cautiously pushed open the door of the barn, gun ready, and entered in.  "I'm here."

There was a noise from the shadows, and a man slowly appeared from the gloom.  "You're alone?" he asked.  There was surprise in his voice.

"What do you want, Lydecker?"

"Where's Max?"

"What, you think I'd bring her so you can get your hands on her for your little army?  Not a chance."

"Or maybe you have another reason…"  

Logan's eyes narrowed suspiciously.  He raised the gun a fraction higher.

"Like, maybe…" Lydecker let the sentence hang, seeing the tension building in Logan.  He gave a grim laugh before continuing.  "No matter.  It's your skills I need.  Put the gun down.  I'm unarmed."  Lydecker held his arms out from his side in a demonstration of innocence.  Logan didn't waver.  He maintained his stance.

"To repeat my first question:  what do you want?"

"Your help."

"And if I don't want to give it?"

"You're free to go."  Lydecker paused.  "But you might want to stay and listen to what I have to say."

*~*~*~

Max walked into the kitchen of the deserted apartment and dumped her backpack and keys on one of the counters, then hoisted herself up on the stool and sat there idly for a moment.  The total silence was a little unnerving.  Most days, there was at least the whirr of the computers to break the quiet – the sound of Logan working away at the keyboard – even background noise from the TV as it broadcast from some news channel at low volume.  Today, there was nothing.  It was too quiet.  Max, who had been so self-sufficient in the past, found herself wanting companionship.  It scared her a little to feel so alone.  She wasn't used to it.  While having numerous friends and acquaintances, she had never really _needed_ them, as such.  She could survive quite nicely on her own, thank you very much.  This was a new thing to her.  It was a little frightening – a combination of having become accustomed to having Logan around all the time, unlike her flat-mates, who had often come and gone with no regard for time or conformity – and of being just a little afraid of the future.  _Having a baby_._  Me?  Who'd'a thunk?_  She'd had nearly eight months to get used to the idea now, but it still scared her a little…no…it scared her a lot.  There were too many "what ifs".  Max sighed, more than a little exasperated with herself.  _What the hell is the matter with me?  I'm afraid of my own shadow today._  

She pulled the cellphone out of her pack and looked at it thoughtfully – the one she'd been too lazy to fetch from the locker and use earlier in the day to call Alec – or maybe it was just that she didn't want Logan to know that she'd asked Alec for help.  Logan still occasionally showed signs of jealousy around Alec.  It was unjustified and he knew it, but it was still safer to keep the two of them in separate compartments of her life.  If Logan wanted to talk to Alec, then it was up to him to do so.  On that basis, they got along fine.  It was when Max tried to bring them together that things seemed to deteriorate.  Three was definitely a crowd – as it had been with Zack in the not-so-distant past.  "Jesus, Max.  You are so slippin'.  Since when have you been such a wimp."  To her surprise, she found herself saying the words out loud.

Leaving the phone on the counter, she pulled out of her backpack the package given to her by Break.  She looked at it thoughtfully wondering where Break had gotten hold of it.  The package was pre-gift-wrapped in wrinkled cellophane that had obviously been opened and resealed at some stage in its lifetime.  She slid a finger under the scotch-tape at one end and pried the cellophane up.  She pulled out the contents, then tore open the plastic wrap.  She pulled out a yellow baby romper suit with fluffy blue ducks marching across the front.  For some reason, the little ducks made her laugh out loud, and she got an answering kick from the baby.  Rubbing the side of her "bump" ruefully, she chuckled, looking down, "Guess that means you like it too."


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:**  Not mine, never will be.

**A/N:**  Many thanks to alaidh for the beta.  I will, however, be updating in the next few days with catherder's beta as well – just haven't had a chance to do that yet.  Please read and review – I admit it, I'm a review addict *tries to stop shaking hands*…

**Chapter 3**

Logan listened impassively as Lydecker explained what he required.  "I need someone to hack into the computer system, open the doors, and set up a fake security feed while my team goes in and takes out the database.  You've done it before."

"So get one of your guys to do it.  Why do you need me?"

"You're better than they are…and you have more to lose."  Logan's jaw twitched, a sign of his tension.  "If they were to get their hands on Max…"

Logan closed his eyes and nodded, exhaling sharply through his nose.  His skin crawled.  He could feel Lydecker getting to him, but was powerless to stop it.  "Max is vulnerable right now.  She's gone contrary to everything in her training."

"Stay on the run – don't look back – escape and evade…" Logan filled in sarcastically.

Lydecker looked at him stonily.  "She was always special."  Logan allowed the most fleeting of grins to pass across his face at that one and was caught unaware as Lydecker suddenly changed tack.  "When's the baby due?"

"A month…maybe a bit less," Logan admitted, realizing he'd been out-maneuvered.

"My wife and I were never able to have children."  Lydecker permitted himself a rare moment of humanity.  "Max and her group – they were like my kids."

"You had a damn funny way of showing it."

"I gave them the skills they needed to _survive_."

Logan gave a short angry laugh.  "Give me the information.  I'll do it."

*~*~*~

Max swirled her coffee absent-mindedly, mixing in the sugar.  She'd left the spoon sticking out of the sugar bowl on the other side of the room and couldn't be bothered going to get it.  Half a dozen times, she'd picked up the cell phone to call Logan, and half a dozen times had put it back down.  She looked at it – daring it to ring – make a sound – do anything other than lie there like the piece of electronic garbage it was.  She finally became aware of a hammering on the door and was about to do something about answering it when it opened anyway.  "Hey, Max!  You there, boo?"

"Yeah, in the kitchen!"

"Damn, girl.  I was bangin' on that door for ten minutes.  Were you plannin' on ignorin' me all night?"

"Sorry.  Didn't hear ya."  She swirled her almost-cold coffee one more time.

Original Cindy slapped a pizza box down on the counter beside Max.  "Thought you might like some company, boo, with Logan gone and all."

Max just looked at her and shrugged.

"Whassup with you?  Aren't you gonna say anythin'?"

Max sighed.  "Sorry.  Guess I'm not very good company right now."  She looked up at her friend quickly, then back down to the coffee.

"Rub-bish!  Ain't nothing wrong with you that a little deep dish action, a long heart-to-heart with Mama OC and a short chat with a certain member of the three legged gender won't fix."  Max gave her a small smile.  "That's better.  Now, you go and get yourself into somethin' more comfortable.  I got movies and food.  We can pretend we old bachelor girls again.  Logan will call sooner or later – you see if he don't.  In the meantime, let's see if Original Cindy can't stop you mopin'."

*~*~*~

Logan eventually found his way back to the hotel, missing a turning in the dark on his first sweep and having to back-track for a mile or so to find it.  This time, he brought the laptop and the disassembled wheelchair up the three steps into the room with him.  He felt defiled after the meeting with Lydecker.  The man was a total creep and you never really knew what his motives were.  Logan suppressed and shudder and went to take a closer look at the bathroom.  _I need a shower_ was his sudden thought.  He studied the shower recess, with its billowing curtain – there was no bathtub – and looked back to judge the width of the doorway.  Satisfied, he went back into the main room.

The room was of a good size, with two double beds, a bedside table and the phone, and a TV on a small table in the corner.  There was what had formerly been a small kitchen area, although the old stove was so rust-bound it was unlikely to be functional.  A scratched table and four solid wooden chairs with colourful padded cushions tied to the seats completed the kitchen furnishings.  He pulled out one of the chairs and tested it out before untying the cushion and dumping it on the table beside the laptop.  He dragged the chair into the bathroom and carefully placed it in the shower, trying to wedge it in such a way that it wouldn't slide.  Then he assembled the wheelchair and began the laborious process of removing the exoskeleton – leaving it on one of the beds.

Before doing anything else, he rang the number of a local pizza parlor, selecting the number from the list of local businesses beside the phone, arranging for delivery in 40 minutes.  Then he wheeled into the bathroom.  The transfer into the shower was awkward because of the four by four inch lip at the bottom, and the kitchen chair slid a bit as Logan transferred across, but at least it didn't dump him on the tiles.  He let the water pour down on his head for a while before giving himself a good all-over scrubbing, even washing his hair with the shampoo provided.  

By the time the pizza arrived, he was ready for whatever codes and other information Deck's CDs might hold.

A pimply faced boy delivered the pizza exactly on time.  Logan gratefully paid and gave the kid a generous tip.

*~*~*~

Max came out a few minutes later wearing a red bathrobe and fluffy pink slippers.  Original Cindy, sitting on the sofa, smothered a laugh at the sight of Max wearing the ultra-feminine slippers.  They were so un-Max.

Max looked at her strangely.  "What's up with you?"

"Nothin', boo," Cindy smiled.  "Come and eat."  She patted the couch beside her.

"Right," Max looked at her somewhat askance, but still did as she was bid.  Leaning into the corner, her back supported by a cushion with her feet pulled up under the bathrobe.  Cindy pushed the pizza box down the table and hit "play" on the remote control.

*~*~*~

Logan shoved the remnants of the pizza into the tiny refrigerator and went back to the table.  His hand hovered over the computer keyboard for a moment before picking up his phone instead.  Almost without thinking, he hit speed dial 1 and waited, at the same time keying in instructions one-handed on the computer.

*~*~*~

Max looked up, hearing her cell phone ringing from the kitchen.  "Well?  Aren't you gonna answer that?" Original Cindy asked her.

She smiled and went to get the phone, sitting back on the abandoned stool in the kitchen to speak.

"Hey."

"Hey, yourself," Logan replied, smiling.  "Thought you weren't gonna answer."

"I thought about it."

"Really?"  Max could hear the smile in his voice.

"You know, Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876."

"Okay, I'll bite.  This is relevant how?"

"Just a reminder.  I thought you'd call me sooner.  I've been going out of my mind."

"I'm sorry, Max.  It has to be like this.  It's for your own good.  I don't want these people coming anywhere near you…"

"Logan, where the hell are you?"  _Come on, Logan, tell me.  It's not like I'm gonna go after you.  _

He didn't answer.  _Max, I can't tell you that.  I won't.  It just wouldn't be safe for you here._

"Logan?"  Her voice sounded weak, almost pleading, even to her.

"Yes?"

"Are you okay?  I mean, you're not in any trouble or anything?"

"I'm fine," he laughed.  "Warm and dry."

There was a loud clatter from the hall, and Max looked enquiringly across at Original Cindy, who got up to investigate.  "What're you up to?"

"Original Cindy's here.  We're watching some movie.  You'd probably like it."

"Really?"

"Yeah, something called…just a sec."  She covered the receiver with her hand.  "OC, what're we watching?"

"_Sleepless in Seattle_," Cindy called back.  "Nothing broken.  Bike fell over," she added.

"_Sleepless in Seattle_," she repeated, trying not to laugh at how apt that could well be.  She didn't expect to get much sleep in the next few days – until Logan returned intact.

"Damn, I'm sorry I'm not there.  That's a good one…for a chick-flick."

"Yeah right."  Max rolled her eyes.

"It was one of my mom's favorites."  Logan paused to smile at that thought.  "Gotta go.  Things to do.  I'll try to call you tomorrow.  I…I miss you."

"Logan, stay safe."

"I'll try."

Max snapped the phone shut, ending the call and sat there with her head in her hands.  She stayed there for so long that Original Cindy came and put her arm over her shoulders.  "Hey, you okay, boo?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Logan aiight?"

"Yeah, says he's fine."  She gave Cindy a weak smile.  "Come on, let's watch the rest of the movie.

"That's my girl."


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:**  Nothing's changed since the previous three chapters.

**A/N:**  Thanks to alaidh and catherder for the beta, and thanks to you all for reviewing.

**Chapter 4**

Original Cindy looked at Max with concern as she stirred her coffee.  Cindy had stayed the night, sleeping on the sofa as she had several times in the past.  "Did you sleep at all last night?"

"Not really."  The exhaustion and worry were apparent on Max's face.  

"Max…"

"I don't sleep, remember?"

"I shared a crib with you.  I _know_ how much you sleep.  Don't give Original Cindy the 'I don't sleep" BS, sugah, 'coz I know that just ain't true.  Besides, you got the little one to think about.  He needs his mama to get plenty of rest."

"He?"

Original Cindy gave a glowing smile.  "Original Cindy knows these things.  Never been wrong 'ceptin' maybe once or twice."  She bit into her toast.  __

"You hear that in there?"  Max patted her belly and cocked her head, pretending to listen.  "You better listen up good, 'coz Auntie Original Cindy is always right, aiight?"

They smiled at each other.  The smiles turned to a laugh when there was an answering movement from the baby.

"Doesn't that hurt?" asked Cindy, suddenly curious.

"Does it hurt you when someone runs their elbow across your belly?  Of course it hurts.  But it's a good hurt.  It's kinda hard to explain…"

"Right."

*~*~*~

Logan took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes.  He'd worked on cracking the codes all night, but it was slow going.  The coding was more complicated than anything he'd ever seen.  He wondered what the installation really was – whether Deck had told him the truth or just some lie so that he could get what he wanted.  But then he remembered what Max said, _"He's never lied to me, not in any substantive way.  Just never told the whole story."_  Logan pushed back from the table and did some stretches, easing the knots in his shoulders.  He wondered what Max was doing, a soft smile passing over his face.

A soft beep from the computer got his attention and he looked at the screen to see that a video was playing.  _Where the hell did that come from?_  Then he looked more closely at the content.  It was some sort of surveillance tape.  The picture quality was grainy, the photographer had shaken the camera a few times, but Logan had no doubt as to the subject.

Logan tried to cancel the looping video and retrace the steps he had taken to cause it to pop up on his screen.  He couldn't figure out where it came from, unless someone had hacked into the satellite feed to the laptop and sent it to him anonymously.  There seemed to be a date in one corner of the video window.  He squinted, trying to read it without his glasses, then put them on and tried again.  It was no good.  The script was too small.  He paused the video and took a still image from it, enlarging and enhancing until he could read the date clearly.  What he read, chilled him more than he thought possible and had him reaching for his phone.

*~*~*~

Max walked down the street headed for Jam Pony.  Original Cindy walked beside her, wheeling her bike.

"Are you sure you wanna do this?"

"Do what?"  Max frowned, not understanding.

"Listen to _Normal_ all day."

"Oh, that," she responded.  "Not really, but what am I gonna do if I don't go to work?"

"Sleep."  Original Cindy's voice was deadpan.

Max flashed her a slightly irritated glance.  "Yeah, right.  That's _so_ gonna happen."

Max suddenly stopped walking and looked behind her.  She felt odd – like she was being watched.  "Think I'll take the bus the rest of the way."

Cindy again looked concerned.  "You aiight, boo?"

"I'm feeling kinda punk."

"Okay…" Original Cindy looked at her doubtfully.

Max looked back again.  She wasn't sure…but there was something.

*~*~*~

Alec groaned as the phone rang, waking him.  He'd spent the night at Crash after leaving Max – too much beer, pool, and noise.  He was hung over.  The last thing he wanted was to be rung at the crack of eight in the morning.  He snatched the phone off the table beside his bed and snarled into it.  "Yeah, whaddya want?"  

"Alec?"

"Logan?"  Alec sat up slowly, rubbing his head.  "What's up?"

"Need your help."

"Well, I figured that.  You don't call just to pass the time of day."

"Right."

Alec was slightly miffed that Logan couldn't see fit to say more than "right" to that.  "Logan, why are you calling me at the crack of dawn."

"Aside from the inaccuracy of that particular statement, I need you to keep an eye on Max."

_She is really gonna love that_, Alec thought.  "And why am I doing this?  She can look after herself.  That's just my opinion, you know."

"Yeah, I know.  There's something going on.  I'm not sure what yet, but someone is after Max…and right now, she's vulnerable."

"Well that's new," came the sarcastic response.  "Does she know this?"  There was silence.  "Logan, you _are_ going to tell her, aren't you?"

"She has enough on her mind at the moment."

"Jesus, Logan.  You gotta tell her, man.  She'll have my butt in a sling as soon as look at me.  When're you coming back?"

"I-I'm not sure.  Depends how long this takes."

*~*~*~

Logan put down the phone after ending his call.  He thought about phoning Max, but didn't.  Something told him that in her current jumpy state, she'd already be alert, and he'd done what he could.  It was up to Alec to deal with her.  

*~*~*~

Max gratefully sank into the first available seat on the rickety bus.  She looked back again, trying to see whatever it was that had pricked at her sub-conscious, but it was gone.  She was also glad to get away from Original Cindy for a while.  Her friend was just slightly overdoing the mama routine and it had been getting on her last nerve.

Max didn't know why she was doing it, but she rummaged in her backpack for her cap, pulling it low so it shadowed her face, and tucking her hair under the back of her sweater – just causing a subtle change in her appearance.  _Gee, Max, you're a bundle of nerves._  She wondered idly if it was hormones making her so nervous, or if there really was something out there.  When she came down to it, though, she trusted her instincts.

When she walked into Jam Pony fifteen minutes later, the first wave of messengers for the day was already on its way out the door.  Alec was comfortably sitting on the counter talking to Normal.  She walked past, ignoring them both for now.  Original Cindy was at her locker and Max joined her briefly. She roughly stuffed the cap back in her pack, shook out her hair, and pushed the backpack into her locker.  She handed Cindy the clipboard she'd use the previous day.  "Give this to Normal.  Back in a minute."  She gestured at the bathroom.

Cindy put out a hand to stop her for a moment.  "You look as white as a ghost.  Something wrong?"  Cindy asked.

"I'm fine."  Max's reply was a little too sharp.

"Don't bite my head off.  I was just askin'."

"Sorry, guess I'm a bit jumpy."  Max immediately headed for the bathroom.

"Remind me to beat on Logan's skinny ass when he gets back where he belongs.  I ain't _never_ seen you like this before," she said to the vacant piece of air where Max had been a moment before.

Cindy slowly walked out from the lockers.  She casually dropped the clipboard on the counter beside Alec and waited as Normal handed her a bundle of packages.  

"What, no wise-ass remarks this morning?" Normal enquired.

Cindy just looked at him blankly.  "Huh?"

"Out of here.  Bip bip bip."

Casting a look behind her at Max, she mounted the bike and headed out.

* * *


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:**  See previous chapters.  Not saying it again.

**A/N:**  Many thanks to alaidh and catherder for the beta.  For those who asked, I am posting weekly.

**Chapter 5**

Logan was startled by a knock at the door of the room.  He guiltily looked at his watch, realizing it was probably housekeeping wanting to tidy the room.  _Room?  _He looked around him.  _Guess it's a room.  Guess I'm floating._  There was another knock.  "Coming!"

Logan pulled up behind the door.  "I was in the shower," he said through the closed door.  "Can you come back in an hour?"

"Sure, sir," a female voice answered.

Logan sighed and looked at the exoskeleton.  Despite his exhaustion, he really wanted to keep going.  The sooner this was finished, the sooner he could be back…

*~*~*~

Max donned the headset Normal handed to her, rearranged the bundles of paper on the desk, and generally set herself up for the working day.  Alec didn't move from where he was lounging on the counter, resting his back against the frame on one side and his boot against the other.

"Don't you have anything better to do than hang around here and get in the way?" Max asked sharply.  She poked him none too gently in the leg to get him to roll off the pile of papers on which he was half-sitting.

"Not really," came the mild response.  "Why, is my presence bugging you?"

"As a matter of fact, yes."  Max glared at him.

""Well, we can't have that, can we," he responded sarcastically, lightly dropping to his feet.  "Might affect the b-a…"

"Alec," Max growled.

"What?"

"Get outta here."

He tipped her a lazy wave, and headed out the door.

*~*~*~

Logan regretfully shut down the laptop and prepared to leave the room.  Something made him disassemble the wheelchair and pack it back in the Aztek.  Maybe it was just that the exoskeleton hadn't failed for a while, or maybe it was just caution.  He felt badly in need of a caffeine fix.  The cheap instant coffee the hotel provided tasted like dissolved dirt and just didn't have the required kick.  He climbed into the SUV, started the engine, and headed out onto the main road.

*~*~*~

Alec wandered up the street from Jam Pony and found a sheltered vantage point at a bus stop, where he could watch the comings and goings from the bike entrance without being obvious about it.  He pulled a newspaper from the inside pocket of his jacket and flicked it out to read – or at least, pretend to read.  The reality was more that the supermarket tabloid held no interest for him and was merely a prop.  He was doing a job, one that he was good at, no matter how tedious.

*~*~*~

Logan took up a booth in a dark corner of the diner, from which he could see the door but not be seen easily.  Dinahs Dinah (the lack of punctuation in the name had made him grimace) was quiet at this late hour of the morning, but the coffee was hot and plentiful, and the food fresh.  Taking a cautious sip of hot liquid, he opened the laptop. Turning it away from view, he went back into the system, retracing what he could to try to locate the source of the surveillance video and how it came to appear on his computer screen.  For a moment, he was reminded of his teenage years when popups had been a common, and highly annoying, occurrence on the internet as it was then.  Eventually popup blocking software had come into existence, and the popup programs had had to become more and more complex in order to beat the blocking…and then the Pulse had come and most of the internet had disappeared overnight.

*~*~*~

Max walked out of Jam Pony at mid-day and wandered slowly in the direction of the markets, not seeming to notice anything or anyone around her, including Alec, who was bent over his motorcycle, pretending to tinker with the engine.  She was aware of the dark-haired shadow who detached himself from a shop wall and followed her up the street.  Alec didn't miss him either.  His eyes followed Max and her tail.  He had to give her some credit for the performance she was giving, her normal sexy swagger replaced by the rolling waddle of a pregnant woman.  _Come to think of it,_ he mused, _that's just what she is_.  Still, this was different from the way she'd moved this morning, and he couldn't help but feel she was putting on an act.

Alec started the motorcycle and revved it a couple of times, trying to show that it was faulty – malfunctioning.  He slowly rode up the street.  Max entered the markets at the upper level as Alec roared past.  He quickly parked the bike between two cars and followed her and her shadow in.

*~*~*~

Max became aware that she was being followed almost as soon as she left Jam Pony and deliberately headed for the busy market.  She knew the rabbit warren of a building intimately and engaged in the time-honored dance of escape and evade through the crowded corridors, up and down ramps and stairs, stopping to look at this and that and making good use of her peripheral vision.  She was aware of Alec in the rear, and was annoyed that he was also following her, figuring that Logan had requested him to keep an eye on her.  _Logan isn't telling me something.  I am gonna so beat on his ass when he gets back._  The tension was working its way down her spine, and the adrenaline surging through her system was making itself felt elsewhere.  The baby kicked and rolled constantly, a distraction she really didn't need on her tour of the markets.  She caught Alec's eye for a moment and made a quick hand-signal, blocking it from her shadow's view with her body.  He nodded almost imperceptibly and moved around behind the shadow.

Max was about to make her move when she felt a sharp prick on her arm.  She pulled away, turning and swung her other fist up, connecting with flesh.  She followed up with a shove that sent her assailant flying into a concrete column.  His head hit with a solid thunk and slid to the ground.  She smashed the dropped syringe with her foot, and found herself facing two others, Alec having already taken out a third.

"Run, Max!" he shouted.  She turned and fled, pushing her way roughly through the crush of people, and out the nearest exit to the street, where she had to stop.  She bent over grasping her side.  Alec came up behind her, startling her.  She straightened quickly and swung around, her hand a fist.  He caught her arm before she swung.  "Hey, it's only me.  You okay?"  

"I'm fine," she winced, rubbing her side ruefully.

He looked back quickly.  "I think we better get moving!"  He grabbed her hand and pulled her along for a few steps, then gave up and ran to start the bike, driving up onto the pavement to collect her.  They roared off down the street, leaving any pursuit behind.  

"Hey!  Hey!" she hit Alec on the shoulder trying to get him to pull up.  "Hold it a minute."

"No!" he shouted back over his shoulder.  "I'm getting you the hell outta here, now, whether you like it or not."

"Alec, stop!"

"No!"  Alec responded vehemently.

Max sat behind Alec unhappily as he drove out of Sector 9, sitting uncomfortably on the bike, her belly against his back.  He exited the sector via the back-streets, avoiding the checkpoints, and headed east across into  Sector 5.  "Alec, if you don't stop soon, I'm gonna pee my pants," Max grunted through gritted teeth.

Alec smiled into the wind.  "Not far now…"

*~*~*~

Alec ran the motorcycle right into the foyer of his apartment building and into the open elevator door before stopping.  Max slid off the bike, gripping her side, and hit the button for the second floor, while he turned off the engine.  "Your place?"

"Yeah."

He wheeled the bike out of the elevator and let them both into his apartment, grinning in amusement as Max headed straight for the bathroom.  She came out more slowly, shaking wet hands.  "You, ah, didn't have a towel in there."

"Sorry."  He tossed her the dish towel he'd slung over his shoulder after using it to dry a couple of cups he'd had to rinse out in order to make coffee.  "Feel better?"

Ignoring his question, she sat on the sofa.  "Thanks for coming to my rescue."  She looked over at him and smiled hesitantly.

"Bet that cost you," Alec grinned, pouring boiling water into one of the two cups on the counter.  

"Alec, why were you following me?  Did Logan call you?"

A series of fleeting expressions passed over his face.  "He asked me to watch you."

"I'll deal with why you didn't tell me another time.  I'm just kinda glad you were there."

Alec shrugged.  "You okay now?" he asked, bringing the two cups of coffee into the living room.  "You want me to call a doctor or something?"

"I'm fine…at least, I think so…"

"Maybe I should call Bev Shankar…"

Max sighed, and rubbed her hip.  The guy who had tried to jab her with the syringe had elbowed her as he went down and there was a large painful bruise forming on her hip as a result.  

"Max?"

"Yeah?"

"Should I call Bev?  You know, just to be sure…"

"I wanna speak to Logan first."  She frowned.  The stress of the day had completely taken her mind off her other worry.

Alec tossed her his phone.  "Go for it. Speed dial 5."

*~*~*~

A quiet beeping and a blinking light warned Logan that the battery in the computer was getting low.  He regretfully shut it down, paid the check and returned to the car.  Driving back to the hotel, he tried to think things through, still pondering the source of the video.  He had been connected to the satellite uplink.  All he could think of was that his secure connection had been compromised…again.  He got a sudden sick feeling.  _Oh, God, Max.  What the hell is going on?_  He frowned in concentration and mounted the steps to his room, intending to get out of there.  If they, whoever they were, had managed to find his computer, then they could find him as well.  He frowned in concentration as he inserted the key in the lock.  

A voice shouted from across the parking lot, "Don't op…"

The rest was lost.  There was a loud bang and Logan was blown back hitting his head on the verandah post.  He sagged to the floorboards, unconscious.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:**  See previous chapters.

**A/N:**  Many thanks to my friends and betas alaidh and catherder.

**Chapter 6**

Max put the phone down on the table.  She'd tried Logan's number three times so far, without result.  

"Max?"

"Not answering."  She grunted as she leaned forward to pick up her coffee.  

"Are you sure you're okay?"

She held up her sweater and rolled down the side of her pants to show the bruise.  Alec quickly rose from his chair and snatched up the phone.

"What're you doing?"

"I'm calling Beverly Shankar.  I don't want to be held responsible if something happens and you lose that baby.  Logan would string me up."

"You have her number?" Max looked at him, impressed for once.

"Logan…"  He grimaced as Max rolled her eyes.  

"Right.  While you're at it, better call Original Cindy and get her to bring over my backpack and let Normal know where I am."  

This time, Alec rolled his eyes.  "Any more orders?"

"Yeah, you got any food in this joint?  Girl gets hungry when she misses lunch."

Alec dialed Beverly Shankar's number and walked into the kitchen holding the phone to his ear.  Beverly answered quickly, and Alec succinctly explained what had transpired at the markets, at the same time examining the contents of his refrigerator.  He dumped a loaf of bread and some peanut butter on the counter, and gave Beverly some directions to a meeting point nearby.  When he finished the call, he tossed the phone back to Max, who had turned to watch him.  "Here, you call OC and Normal."

Max dialed Original Cindy's pager, punched in Alec's number and waited for her to call back, while Alec quickly assembled a sandwich and handed it to her. He gave a cursory wave as he left the apartment to meet Beverly.  Max thoughtfully munched on her sandwich while she waited, pulling a face at the dry bread, which had obviously been in the fridge for a few days.

Original Cindy called her a few minutes later.  "Hey, boo," she answered.

"Max?  What you doin' on Alec's phone?  What happened?  Thought we were gonna have lunch."

"There was some trouble at the markets."

"Oh-oh.  What kinda trouble?"

"Never mind that now. Think you can make some excuse with Normal and bring my backpack over?"

"Where are you?" she sighed.  "I guess I can do that."

"I'm at Alec's place."

Original Cindy rolled her eyes.  "What's Logan gonna say 'bout that."

"Absolutely nothing.  He had Alec watching me…and I'm real glad he did, just for once."

Cindy chuckled.  "Ya think it's safe for me to go there?"

Max considered for a moment.  "It'll have to be.  Just be careful."

"Aiight, boo.  You're the boss."

Max ended the call and again tried Logan's number.  The phone rang and rang, and eventually just rang out for a fourth time.  Max put the phone back on the table, suddenly feeling very tired.  She lay down on the couch, resting her head on her hands.  Within minutes, she was asleep.

*~*~*~

Original Cindy looked around before opening Max's locker.  She stuffed the backpack inside her own, underneath the pile of packages she had to deliver, figuring that was a good cover, and pushed her bike up the ramp.  She mounted the bike outside the entrance and rode off down the street, an innocent messenger out and about her business.

*~*~*~

Max woke with a start as Alec banged open the door noisily.  "Any luck getting hold of Logan?" he asked, barging in ahead of Beverly.  

She shook her head and sat up slowly.  "No, none.  I don't know whether to be worried or angry," she said ruefully.  "Hello, Beverly," she added as an afterthought.

"Max."

Alec wandered into the kitchen, pulled a Coke from the fridge, and noisily opened the can.

Bev sat down on the coffee table in front of Max and pulled a blood pressure cuff from her black bag.  "You want to fill me in on what happened today?"

"I was attacked in the markets.  He," she looked over her shoulder at Alec, "got all worried."

Alec gave a quirky smile, then ignored the comment, hitting the power button on the TV remote control.  Bev pushed up Max's sleeve until she saw the deep, bloody scratch where the needle had almost gone in.  "What's this?"

"They tried to jab me with a syringe.  Guess that happened when I pulled away."

Beverly clucked her tongue and proceeded to check Max's blood pressure using a battery-operated monitor.  "Hmm…a little high, but I guess that's understandable."

"Compared to what?  I'm an X5," Max added gloomily.  "Who can say what's high and what's normal for me?"

"Max, I've done this to a few X5s before, including you, as you will recall, and their blood pressure was pretty much the same as mine," Beverly admonished gently.

"Max, show her your hip."  Alec had found a news station and was watching from the kitchen as he drank his Coke.

Max gave him a pissy look and exposed her hip.  "How did this happen?"

"I think I must have hit it on one of the market stalls as I ran out."

"I don't think that's anything to worry about."  Beverly was reaching for her stethoscope.  She tried a couple of places on Max's belly before smiling.  "Got it."  Max looked at her expectantly.  "You want to listen in?"

"Sure."

"Hold this for me."  While Max held the stethoscope in place, Beverly put the earpieces in her ears.  She listened, an expression of wonder spreading over her face.  She never tired of hearing her baby's beating heart.  Beverly packed away the blood pressure monitor while Max listened, then held her hand out for the stethoscope.  Max returned it to her with regret.

"I don't think there's any problem, but you can give me a call any time if you're worried."

"Thanks, Bever…" Max's voice trailed off and she blanched as she caught sight of something on the news broadcast from the TV.  "Alec," she said tensely.  "Look!  Turn up the sound!"

"Max…" Alec said unhappily.  "That looks like Logan's car…"

"…ripped apart the cabin occupied by Paul Eastman.  Emergency services have been unable to enter the remains of the room to ascertain if he was in it at the time…"

"Where is this?"  Beverly had turned and was watching as well.  

…disturbed the quiet of the town in the region of Gray's Harbor at about mid-day…"

Max was on her feet.  "Wait, Max!" called Alec.  "I'm coming, too.  Beverly?"

"I'll find my own way back.  Max, the bike isn't a good idea.  Take my car."  She gave Alec the keys.  "It's the gray Toyota SUV, just near where you picked me up, Alec."  Alec nodded.

"Thanks, Beverly."  Max hugged the doctor gratefully.  

"Take care, Max."

Max gave her a watery smile and followed Alec out the door, nearly knocking over Original Cindy, who had been about to rap at the door.

"Sorry, OC, gotta jet."  

"Max, your backpack…"  Cindy handed it to her as she brushed past.  

"Thanks, explain later…"

"Aiight…" Cindy looked on in confusion as they left her standing in the corridor.

*~*~*~

Logan groaned and blinked.  His head pounded and there seemed to be the world's brightest spotlight shining right in his face.  He lifted his hand to shade his eyes and immediately regretted the movement.  Every part of his body seemed to ache.  He could feel something hard digging into his shoulder, and on checking with his hand, found a metal bar.  He deduced that he was lying on an army cot.  He closed his eyes again and became aware of voices and noises in the background.  A phone rang somewhere nearby. A gravelly voice answered it, and issued a curt command to someone else.

A shadow passed over him, and he cautiously opened his eyes to see Lydecker peering at him.  "I see you're awake," the colonel stated.

"What happened?"

"Security was compromised.  We had a cuckoo in the nest.  It's been dealt with."

Logan absorbed that piece of information slowly.  "Max…"

"Is fine, as far as we're aware."

Logan struggled to rise on the slippery cot. He was embarrassed to realize that someone had stripped him to his boxers and that the exoskeleton was gone.  "No, you don't understand…she…they sent me something.  I think they want her."  Logan finally got a grip on the side framework of the cot and pushed himself upright, his head spinning.  Lydecker left him for a moment.  Logan heard him speaking to someone behind a screen, and then running footsteps and a door slamming.  Logan took the opportunity to hook his legs over the side of the cot and sat there, cradling his head in his hands.  Deck was back in a moment with a glass of water and a couple of aspirin.  Logan looked up at him in amazement, but accepted the offering gratefully.  "You get my computer?"

"Yeah, it's here.  You remember what happened?"

"Yeah, I remember.  What were you doing there?"

"Figured they'd go after you first.  Sorry, I was too late."

Looking around the room, Logan became aware that the exoskeleton – a burnt out circuit clearly visible – was propped against the wall nearby, and that his wheelchair, already assembled, was beside the cot.  Someone had folded his clothes and left them on the seat, along with his glasses.  Lydecker made no objection when Logan reached for his jeans and started to put them on – not such an easy task on the slippery and slightly unstable cot.  At least the pounding in his head was subsiding gradually.  He got as far as his socks and then realized he had no shoes other than the boots he wore with the exoskeleton, and swore softly under his breath.  He was certainly _not_ going to wear those boots! He realized he was going to have to be very careful not to injure his feet.  At least he had the thick wool socks for protection.  Lydecker, apparently tired of waiting, left the room again.  His voice could be heard issuing more orders.

Logan pulled the chair closer and made sure the brakes were locked before cautiously transferring.  The cot rocked, but he managed to move across without landing on the floor.  He thought briefly of Max, wondered if she had tried to contact him.  _Hell, Cale, be honest with yourself, you're worried whether she's okay.  You should have told her about the surveillance video and now you got a big case of guilty conscience._  He closed his eyes and sighed before leaving the room.  __

* * *


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:**  See previous chapters and all that jazz.

**A/N**:  Many thanks to alaidh and catherder for betaing the aussie outta me.  Also many thanks to everyone who has reviewed.

**Chapter 7**

Alec had insisted on driving Beverly's car.  They had abandoned his bike behind a conveniently placed dumpster in Sector 5 before taking the charcoal gray SUV.  Max had fumed for a while over Alec's recalcitrance, but she gradually saw the sense, finally realizing that she wasn't in a fit state to drive, in any case.  He was cool, calm, and collected, whereas the combination of raging hormones, stress, and lack of sleep had her on edge.  _Original Cindy was right; I _do_ need sleep_.  

It had been an easy trip out of town, for once.  They weren't stopped at a single sector point, for which Alec was truly glad.  Alec noted briefly that Max had her phone in one hand and had the other resting gently on her stomach.  She had tried Logan's number several more times, but seemed to have given up for now.  In return, Max reflected on how much Alec had changed since he'd barged into her cell at Manticore as her assigned "breeding partner."  _Breeding partner_…c_hose my own, didn't I?  Take that, Manticore!_

Alec glanced away from the road and looked at Max a little strangely.  He had felt her eyes boring into him, and it discomforted him.  He disguised the crawling feeling by switching on Beverly's police radio, scanning for some clue as to where they needed to go other than "Gray's Harbor."  Gray's Harbor was a large area to search; more specificity was definitely required.  

Max batted his hand out of the way. "You drive.  Let me do that."

The radio was unusually silent on the subject of exploding hotel rooms.  They heard a frantic call from an officer giving chase to a car involved in a robbery in Olympia, and another chasing a speeding car on the highway; that was all.  They passed through a couple of small towns, stopping every once in a while for Max to use the bathroom, but also checking out the local hotels and eateries.

"Whoa, pull up!"

Max's sudden exclamation had Alec looking at her a little strangely.  "Not another PB?"

She glared at him.  "Back up a bit."

Alec looked both ways and then executed a U-turn.  They were on the main street of a small town and had just come past a hotel of sorts – a scattered collection of wooden cabins on a street corner.

"Slowly…there, you see it?"

"I see it."  Alec parked the car and unbuckled his seatbelt.  Ignoring Max's glare, he added, "Stay here.  I'm gonna take a look."

*~*~*~

On entering the large room, Logan felt at an immediate physical disadvantage.  Lydecker hadn't seen him in the wheelchair since November 2019, and while Lydecker must have known about the exoskeleton, it bothered Logan that the shorter man now towered over him.  They were in what appeared to be yet another barn.  The laptop was sitting on a long, central table, still in its case, apparently untouched.  Lydecker, checking a list of items on a clipboard, nodded at him curtly as he opened the case and set up the computer on the table.  They were alone for the moment, although the several chairs and a flickering TV set gave evidence that others were around.

"I need a power socket – battery's dead…and…where's my backpack?  The disks were in it."  Logan looked at Lydecker, suddenly concerned.

"Backpack?  No.  You weren't carrying one,"  Lydecker responded.

"I need the disks.  I can't finish deciphering the codes without them."

"Where was it?"

"I thought I was carrying it…might be in the car…"

Lydecker stuck his head around a side door and called out for someone, then he was gone through another exit.  Logan heard a loud roar as a powerful engine started, before someone else entered the room.

*~*~*~

"It's Logan's…" Alec spun his head quickly to look behind him, hearing Max hiss one word.

"Lydecker!"

Alec's eyes narrowed as he saw the former Manticore colonel.  "Max…"

He was speaking to air - Max was already out of the car.  Coming up behind her former bête noire, she put a hand over his mouth, grabbed his arm, and pulled him back roughly toward the rear door of Beverly Shankar's SUV, which Alec obligingly opened for her.  Max backed in, pulling Lydecker after her.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Max's tone was angry, her words issuing from between clenched teeth.  

"It's…not what you think, Max."  Lydecker struggled against her briefly, then realized it was futile – she was much stronger than he was.

"Where's Logan?"

"He's fine."

"Prove it."

Lydecker sighed.  "I'll take you to him."

Max jerked her chin at Alec, indicating he should get in the car.  "Drive."  She then turned her attention back to Lydecker.  "You can direct."

*~*~*~

"Logan?" a female voice said softly.

Logan quickly turned away from the table and looked into a pair of pretty, dark eyes framed by a mane of long blonde hair.  "Syl," he smiled.  

"Nice to see you…awake."  She smiled up at him from where she was crouched, digging in the bottom of a large box.

"Nice to be awake," he responded, rubbing the back of his head and regretting it instantly as his fingers came in contact with a lump the size of an egg.

"Feeling okay?"

"Well, aside from the thousand bongos in my head…yeah, I guess."

"And Max?  How is she?"

Logan's expression changed subtly, conflicting emotions sweeping across his features – pride, worry, happiness, fear.  "She's fine, at least, she was …"

If Syl noticed his hesitation, she gave no sign, as her smile broadened and she said, "Good.  I'm glad."  

"Syl!" a voice called from outside.

"Hang on!" she called back.

Logan opened the computer case and pulled out the electrical cord, hooking it up, but then he was at a loss.  The nearest power outlet that he could see was on the far side of the room and he had no extension cord.  "Um, Syl, do you think you could, ah…" he waved the plug in the air.

"What I'm looking for," she responded, again digging in the box.  "Ah, here it is."  She dragged out a long cable, plugged it into the wall, and snaked it across the floor to Logan.  "Here you go."

"How did you know?"

"Heard what you said to Lydecker."

"Does he have you watching me?"

"No, of course not," Syl replied, a hurt expression on her face.  "But this place has thin walls, and, well, X5 hearing..."

"What're you doing with Lydecker?"

"Well, it sure as hell isn't the pay and conditions."

Logan laughed.  "Seriously."

"He asked us for help on this one.  Said he needed the best of the best."

"And you believed him?"

"We didn't have anything better to do at the time."

"Syl!" the insistent voice again came from outside.

"I'm coming!" Her impatience now was a tangible thing.  She sighed, flicked her hair off her face, and was gone.

*~*~*~

Max's head was having a hard time ruling her heart with Lydecker in the car.  It annoyed her intensely that Lydecker seemed more amused than afraid, now that they were moving.  For herself, she had an equivocal relationship with him.  On the one hand, there were all those events of her childhood, colored, as he himself had said, by looking at them with a child's eyes. On the other hand, there were the times in the last few years, where he had been of assistance, had even come to the rescue.  She had a real battle raging within her mind as to how to react to him.  Was he a mentor or a tormentor?  

Alec had not been part of Deck's group, had been based elsewhere, and his only experience with Lydecker had been as an adult, but Max still found herself wondering what his real intentions were.  She hated not knowing what was going on.  _Logan, you are so going to pay for this!  I thought we were past all this 'keep the bad stuff to yourself' nonsense; guess I was wrong.  We really need to talk._

"I want to know why someone tried to stick me with a syringe in the marketplace today," Max said evenly.

"They're after breeding females," Lydecker flicked a quick glance at Max's swollen belly.  "Proven breeders."

"Tell me this isn't another _let's-breed-a-super-race_ scenario.  I thought we already dealt with that one when we took down Manticore."

Lydecker clenched his jaw and snorted through his nostrils.  His expression was grim.  "They're trying to pervert Manticore technology to their own ends."

"That's new how?"

"You want your child to grow up in a concentration camp, without the freedom to chose the life it wants to lead?"

"And how we grew up was different to this in what sense?"

"You had enough to eat, you had mental stimulation…"

"Oh, you mean _drills_ and _rote learning_ and the slops dished up in the mess with a side-serve of vitamins.  Teaching nine-year-olds how to kill without compunction, to hold their breath under-water for hours.  Breaking our bones to see how long it took us to heal.  Dissecting us when something went wrong.  Yes, such a wonderful life."

Alec snickered and muttered something under his breath.

"You want to contribute to the conversation, Alec?"

"No, go ahead, Max."

"Left here," said Lydecker.  "This is different.  They're breeding slave labor for farms and factories.  They plan on giving basic nutrition, no more.  There will be no education of any sort.  These children will be taken from their mothers and raised as slaves from birth.  They will be trained to operate basic machinery, to pick fruit, herd cows, whatever."

Max gave a bitter laugh.  "And this differs from Manticore in what respect?"

"Max, we were soldiers, not farm labor," Alec chimed in from the front seat.

She gave the back of Alec's head a dirty look.  "What does this have to do with Logan?"

"I need his computer skills.  Need him to hack into the system, set up the tape loop…get us in there."

"So get your own guys to do it."

"Max," Lydecker turned to face her, his expression grim.  "He's better than they are.  We both know that.  And he has…"

"More to lose?"  The irony wasn't lost on her.  She leaned back into the seat, some of the tension draining out of her.  "Okay, so we better deal with this bitch."

* * *


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:**  See chapters 1 to whatever…I'm not saying it again…

**A/N**:  Many thanks to catherder and alaidh for the beta.

**Chapter 8**

Logan booted up the computer, logging into an alternative secure server through the satellite hookup, hoping against all hope that it hadn't been compromised as well.  The satellite connected quickly, and before doing anything else, he thoroughly checked his system and fired off a quick e-mail to Sebastian, asking him to start tracking down replacement parts for the exoskeleton…yet again.

He also played back the video, touching the screen with his fingers as it played, before suddenly becoming aware that he wasn't alone – that there was someone standing behind him.  "Where did that come from?"

Logan looked over his shoulder into Krit's serious brown eyes and, not for the first time, was struck by his physical resemblance to Max.  He presumed that the two of them had been created from eggs taken from the same donor, thus making them closer to being real siblings than any of the other X5s he had met to date.  "It came in piggy-backed on another file," Logan replied, looking back at the screen.

Krit pulled up a chair and sat beside Logan, watching as the video followed Max at a distance through the markets.  Logan recognized the sweater she'd worn the previous day, his sweater, he realized with a start.  "When was this taken?" Krit asked.

"Yesterday."

"How do you know?"

"Firstly, because it's dated," Logan pointed to the tiny date blinking in the corner of the screen.  "Secondly, because those are the clothes Max was wearing yesterday."  _And she thinks I never notice,_ he added mentally.

"Logan, they wanted you to know she was being watched."

"I know," Logan replied evenly.  "Which is why I got a friend to watch her."

Krit grinned.  "Bet that'll make her happy."

Logan turned and looked at him uncomfortably.  "What was I supposed to do?"

"Well, you could have told her for one thing.  You haven't told her, have you..."

Logan shrugged sheepishly.  "I-I…"

Krit grinned and thumped him on the shoulder gently.  "Oh, boy, I hope I'm there when she kicks your butt."

"I didn't want to worry her," Logan said softly, "but all I've done is worry myself."

"Hey, it's okay, man.  Max is a big girl.  She can take care of herself."

"Krit…" Logan started to speak, then stayed his tongue as the video finally showed a full-body shot, rather than a floating head and shoulders one.

Krit just squeezed Logan's shoulder and left the room.

*~*~*~

"Who else do you have on your team?"

"Syl, Krit…Zack…"

"No one else?"

Lydecker shook his head.  "We're pretty isolated here, and we've been keeping on the move, especially once we discovered that OpSec had been breached.  There's only those three, myself and Logan here, plus a small group keeping watch on the facility, of course.  No one else.

Alec drove the Toyota up to the rear door of the barn, turned off the engine, and caught Max's eye in the mirror.  When Max nodded in response, he got out of the car and walked around to the rear door.

Only then did Max leave the vehicle.  Alec roughly pulled Lydecker out the other side, then Max took over, taking his arm in a deceptively loose grip and pushing him ahead of her. Alec brought up the rear, carrying the backpack Lydecker had been holding when Max grabbed him at the motel.

Syl, Krit, and Zack were huddled together in conversation when Max, Lydecker, and Alec entered.  They swung around as one, pulling out their weapons, realizing that Lydecker wasn't alone.  As soon as they saw Max and Alec, they relaxed.  Max grinned, "This a private party, or can anyone…"

Alec's "Hey guys," from behind Lydecker was ignored, as Syl, Krit, and Zack greeted their sister.

"Hey, there," said Logan from across the room.  He'd turn to face them as soon as he heard Max's voice.

Max's smile of relief lit her whole face.  "Hey, yourself," she responded.  "What's a nice boy like you doin' in a barn like this?"

Max stepped out from behind Lydecker and moved toward Logan.  As Zack saw Max properly for the first time, his expression changed from pleasure, to pain, to anger.  He turned away from them and walked out the far door.  Max was about to follow him, but Syl grabbed her arm and stopped her.  "Let him go, Max.  He knows you'll never be more than a sister to him, but that doesn't stop the hurtin'."

Max just nodded.  "I know…"

Logan took her hand.  "Hey," he said looking up at her, eyes shining now that he knew she was safe.  "I'm glad you're okay."

"What happened to the exoskeleton?"

"Busted."

Max gave a chuckle.  "That piece a junk ain't worth what you paid for it."

"Um, Max, I didn't pay anything for it."

"Hmmf, you got what you paid for.  Where's your shoes?" she asked, noticing that all he wore on his feet was a pair of thick wool socks.

"I am _not_ wearing those heavy boots just to wheel around the place."

Lydecker handed Logan his backpack.  Logan dug around in the bag, coming up with the two computer disks and his cell phone.  "It fell into some bushes," Lydecker explained.   "Wasn't hard to find."

Logan nodded, "Right," and started to turn away from him.  

"Max, it might be better if you stay here," Lydecker said seriously.

"Lydecker, I have no intention of goin' anywhere until this bitch is done.  Alec, you wanna go?"

Alec hesitated a moment.  "I'm staying."

Max nodded.  "Looks like you're stuck with both of us."

Lydecker's expression never changed, but something in his body language told Max that he had what he wanted.  She narrowed her eyes and looked at him closely as he walked away.  He disappeared into the doorway to what appeared to be a small storeroom off the main area and shut the door.

Syl, with Lydecker finally gone, had no hesitation in hugging Max.  "I'm glad you're here, little sister."

"Me too, I guess," Max shrugged.

Logan slotted the CD back into the drive on the computer and started the decoding program again.  The screen ran fast with numbers.  Max, hearing the computer beep as the program started up, walked over and occupied the chair used by Krit earlier.  Lydecker stuck his head out the door and issued some curt commands to Krit and Syl, then shut himself back inside his "office" again.  Alec nodded at Max, then said he'd go with them.

Max looked around her curiously.  The barn was in good repair, with a set of double doors at the front end, plus a smaller side door, and another small door at the back.  There were two small side-rooms, one of which was Lydecker's office. A peek into the other revealed that it contained the army cot used by Logan earlier, and the exoskeleton.  There was the long table on which Logan had set up the computer, and several boxes of equipment.  Max turned her attention back to Logan, bit her lip, and said, "You gonna tell me why you had Alec following me 'round?  Not that I'm not glad he was there or anything, but…"  She turned her head, watching Alec follow Syl out the door, then heard Beverly's SUV start up again.

"Someone had you under surveillance."

"And you didn't tell me?  Logan!"  Max cuffed the back of his head.

"Ow!"  He rubbed his head ruefully, gently touching the lump with his fingers.

Max looked at him oddly.  "Hey, I didn't hit you that hard."

"Max…" Logan still fingered the bump.

"Here, let me take a look at it."  She stood behind him and gently ran her fingers through his hair until she found the spot, parting the hairs so she could see underneath.  Someone had already cleaned the small graze, but the lump was quite impressive.  "What happened?  Someone hit you with a baseball bat?"

"Ha-ha.  Hit my head on the verandah post when the room blew up."

"Well, you'll live.  Your head's pretty hard."

Logan grinned wryly.  "Max, how'd you locate Lydecker?"

"The explosion made the news – we just started lookin'."

Logan nodded.  "I'm sorry about…you know…"

"I'll let it pass – this time, but you gotta stop keeping things to yourself.  I've been outta my head with worry for two days."

"If it makes you feel any better – so have I."

Max paused for a moment.  "Don't suppose they got any food in this chicken outfit.  I gotta use the bathroom as well."

Logan gave her a cheeky grin.  "That's news."

"What?"

"Since when aren't you hungry and…"

"Yeah, all right, Mr. Hacker.  You worry about breaking codes and I'll go eat and pee for two."

Max exited through the nearer door and found herself in the yard of an old farm.  There was a cluster of aging wooden buildings, including a doorless shed holding the rusting remnants of a tractor that appeared to have been stripped of all useful bits; a large chicken coop with no wire mesh; and an old house.  The roof of the house was partly missing.  Fading scorch marks on the walls gave evidence as to the reason.  The kitchen was still useable, however, and the door stood open.  Max could see Zack sitting at the table, morosely glaring at a can of Coke.

Max picked her way around some junk on the ground, and knocked hesitantly at the kitchen door.  "Hey."

"Hey, Maxie."  Zack looked at her evenly.

"Is there a bathroom anywhere?"

Zack pointed to an internal door.  "First left."

Max was back in a few moments, shaking drops of water from her hands.  She pulled out a chair and straddled it, leaning her arms on the back.

"Max, I'm sorry for before."

"It's okay, Zack, I do understand."  She smiled, "Tinga and me – we're a lot alike."  She hesitated, seeing Zack's face.  "Zack, this is my one chance at some kind of normal life.  I'm grabbing it with both hands."

"It's okay, Max.  I'd like that too.  The trouble is, that kind of normal life – it's not safe for us."

Max sighed.  "Got any food?"

"Check the cooler."

Max peered deep into the confines of an old drink cooler with a time-yellowed white lid.  She found the contents somewhat lacking in home comfort.  There was a container of something at the bottom that looked like it had been there for a while.  It was growing a fur coat and looked like it was about to sprout legs.  Max grimaced in distaste and examined more favorably a small block of cheese and two small apples that looked like they were edible.  The only other items she could see were about a dozen cans of Coke, less the one on which Zack was still fixing his gaze.

"Gees, what're you people living on – air?"

Zack shrugged.

Max took the cheese and the better of the two apples and stood leaning against the doorframe, eating and watching the sunset above the line of trees.  She shivered slightly, which made Zack look at her curiously.  He got up from his chair and disappeared inside.  The living room of the house wasn't really habitable – it had been badly damaged by smoke when the upper story caught fire, apparently several months before, but they had been using it to store their clothes.  He came back holding a fleecy jacket and a pair of running shoes.  "Here," he said, handing them to Max.  "Put this on.  The shoes are for Logan."

She turned and looked at him in amazement.  He just shrugged and went back to his seat.  "Thanks."

"Can't have any harm coming to that baby."

"What, you rehearsing to be godfather?"

"You never know, Maxie, you just never know."  Max gently touched his head before leaving him to Zen and the art of soft drink can turning.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:**  See what came before.  Nothing's changed.

**A/N**:  Many thanks, as always, to catherder and alaidh.

**Chapter 9**

Max flitted around the room preparing for sleep.  Logan already lay on the old mattress Zack had dragged down from the farmhouse as soon has he realized how difficult it was for Logan to traverse the debris-strewn ground of the yard, and that both Logan and Max intended to stay in the barn overnight.  Aside from anything else, Logan's decoding program was still crunching numbers and he wanted to stay nearby for that reason as well.

"Max, come to bed."  Logan's voice was partially muffled by the unzipped sleeping bag he was using for a blanket.

"In a minute."  She smiled down at him – a flash of white teeth in the dark mask of her face caught by the dim glow of the computer screen in the next room.  She folded her sweater and dropped it on the top end of the mattress for use as a rough pillow, then, clad only in a t-shirt (borrowed from Zack) and panties, she crawled under the covers.  She hissed as her bruised hip came into contact with the mattress, and rolled over, presenting Logan with a view of her back.  She snuggled back into the curve of his body, spooning with him.

Logan smiled into Max's hair, puffing a breath to move one loose tendril that was tickling his chin.  Max claimed Logan's hand, pressing his palm down on the smooth, soft skin of her abdomen where the baby kicked and rolled.  "Junior's feeling playful tonight," Logan commented.

"Yes, he is."

"He?  Have you been holding out on me?"

Max smiled to herself.  "Nope.  Original Cindy says it's a boy, and…"

"Original Cindy is always right?" he finished for her.

"Right."

"Old wives tales."

"Right.  But no harm in playing along."

"And if she's wrong?"

"No harm, no foul.  It'll be a case of the exception that makes the rule."

Logan laughed softly.  "Hear that, Hiram?"  Logan patted Max's belly as he used the pet name they had been using for the unborn child.  "You better be a boy or Aunty OC will put the smack down."  He added by way of an afterthought, "That'll be a change from her wanting to put the smack down on _me_!"

Max smiled and slipped a foot over Logan's legs, hooking a toe around his ankles to pull them closer.  "Ooh!  Your feet are cold," she said.

"Wouldn't know," he responded dryly.  "Feel free to warm them up."

*~*~*~

Max awoke to the sound of voices softly murmuring outside the door.  A chink of light spilled through, but the speakers were out of view.  Listening carefully, she picked out the voices of Lydecker, Alec, and Logan.  Max could hear the tired edge in Logan's voice.  He'd been asleep within minutes of her joining him in bed.  He wasn't a morning person at the best of times, even less so when that morning was, _Good Lord_, she thought, _4:00 am?_  She momentarily debated whether or not to leave the warmth of the mattress and see what trouble was looming or to try to sleep some more.  She had slept more in the last few months than she had ever done, as if the baby were sapping her energy.  After a minute of mulling it over, curiosity got the better of her, and she got up, not bothering to dress, and walked out draped in the sleeping bag.

Logan, Lydecker, and Alec were all examining the computer screen intently, with Zack off to one side leaning against the table.  All four of them watched as Logan manipulated the security camera in what appeared to be a nursery of infants.  Max shoved Alec out of the way so she could sit on the chair next to Logan.  Alec flicked a glance at her, then turned his attention back to the screen.  Zack frowned slightly, but his attention was more on what Logan was doing.  Logan keyed in some commands and the camera panned around the room. 

Max was deeply troubled.  Other than a single nurse sitting at a desk in the corner, the nursery seemed to be unattended.  She flinched as the view changed to another room, this one filled with sleeping adults.  One woman moved in her sleep, and for a moment, her hair parted long enough to reveal a barcode.  Max sensed Zack and Alec both tensing, and she suppressed a shiver.

Logan switched around, viewing several corridors.

"Okay, we're in.  Whenever you're ready, I'll be able to guide your team through," he said.  "I can also disable all the security and put in a false camera feed."  

Lydecker looked at his watch.  "It's too late tonight."

"There's a full moon," interjected Zack.  "We shouldn't risk going in with that much light."

Lydecker grunted his agreement.  "Wednesday."

Logan swiveled his chair to face Lydecker.  "I'd like to be there."

Lydecker gave a half smile.  "I want you in the command vehicle.  I need you close by in case something goes wrong."

"If he goes, so do I," said Max.

"No!"  Logan was adamant.

"Logan, in case you haven't caught on by now, this girl is gonna do what she's gonna do, no matter what you or anyone else says."

Logan glared at Zack momentarily, hearing his own words echoed back to him.  He gave a deep sigh.

"I'm coming," Max said quietly.

*~*~*~

The group clustered around the computer had broken up soon after that and gone back to their various allotted sleeping areas.  Logan lingered only long enough to see if he'd be able to get back into the system – trying a few things to see if his invasion of the system had been detected.  It seemed all was well.  

Logan sat in the wheelchair looking down at Max, who was already lying on the mattress.  "You gonna tell me what caused that bruise on your hip?"

"Oh, you saw that.  It's nothing really.  I hit one of the stands in the markets doing my usual escape and evade.  Beverly cleared it."

Logan closed his eyes and nodded.  "I should have told you."

"Hey, you told Alec.  At least that's something.  Now, come and get some sleep, coz I don't think we'll be getting much tomorrow."

*~*~*~

Logan thrashed in his sleep.  _"Max?  Max, answer me!"_

Max sat up beside him, her brow furrowed.  Logan seldom stirred in his sleep.  His long hours at the computer, exercise routine, and just the sheer physical effort of keeping himself mobile and going about his daily life tired him out.  It was a sign of how worried he was.

Logan heard the gunfire from the woods and his stomach threatened to leap through his throat.  _"Something's wrong."_  He snatched the headset from his head, dropping it on the table.  The exoskeleton took him to her almost automatically, navigating him blindly through the woods.  "_Max?  Max.  Oh, God.  Okay, it's okay."_

_"Logan," Max responded, her head lolling back over his arm._

_"This isn't bad."_

_"Logan…"_

_"Everything's going to be okay."  He opened her shirt, revealing the mess the bullet had made of her chest.  "This isn't bad."_

_"Logan…"_

_"It's okay. You're gonna be all right."_

_"I'm sorry…" she looked at him bleakly, then her eyelids dropped shut._

"No, no, no, no.  No, we're gonna get you out of here. Okay?  It's gonna be all right."  The panic was rising in his voice.

She opened her eyes again and smiled at him weakly.  "There's something I've got to tell you.  I should've…"

"Logan!  Logan, wake up!"  Max's insistent voice penetrated the dream.  "Logan!"  Logan became aware of someone roughly shaking his shoulders, and cautiously opened his eyes to find Max kneeling beside him.  "You were having a nightmare."  Max looked down at him, concern written all over her face.  "Are you okay?"

"Oh, God."  Logan ran a hand through his sleep-messed hair.  "I was reliving it."

"What?  Reliving what?"

"That night – the night we took down Manticore."

Max sat back on her heels.  She paused, at a loss as to how to respond.  "Logan, this time it'll be different.  I'm not going in.  I'll be with you."  

"I know," Logan looked at her steadily.  "But that doesn't stop the worry."

"That accomplishes nothing.  They already tried to get me in Seattle.  I think I'm safer here."

"You think so?"  His tone was full of doubt.

"No, not really, but that's what I keep tellin' myself."  Her characteristic sarcasm made him smile – a weak, watery smile, but a smile all the same.  Looking around him, he finally became aware that it was daylight – he could see her face in the light filtering through a small window high up on the wall.  A golden glow reflected off the dingy paintwork of the wall opposite.  Max's stomach rumbled loudly.

"If an army marches on its stomach, you sound like you got a whole division in there," Logan commented.  "Wonder if they brought back anything other than pizza last night."

"One way to find out."  Max stood up and looked down at Logan.  "I'm starving."

Logan grinned up at her as she stood over him, still only wearing Zack's t-shirt and her panties.  His grin changed to a slight frown.  "That's looking better."  He pointed to her hip.

"I heal fast."  The impressive purple markings of the previous day were already fading to yellow.  

Logan nodded.  "I'm…glad you're here."

"Come on.  Get up and feed me," Max smiled.

*~*~*~

The smell of frying bacon and eggs had brought all of the X5s, and even Lydecker, to the kitchen.  Logan, by daylight, had been able to pick his way through the accumulated debris in the yard, aided by the occasional surreptitious shove from behind by Max, who made a mental note to get some of the others to move the junk out of the way.  They had two more nights to wait out in this place – unless Lydecker decided a move was in order – and it was just ridiculous to have one member of the team virtually a prisoner in the barn because the yard was such an obstacle course.  Besides, "busy work" was one way of relieving pre-mission tension.  

For herself, she was fighting an unaccustomed urge to clean – "nest-building" Original Cindy had called it in a recent conversation.  _"Total whack,"_ had been Max's response_.  "This place is so tidy I ain't got nothin' to clean."_  Original Cindy had looked around the tidy penthouse kitchen where they were both sitting.  

_"Never mind, boo.  You'll find something when the time comes."_  

Max contented herself with washing the dishes while Logan made use of the bathroom.  He'd gotten over the crawling sensation in his skin from having to deal with Lydecker now that he realized the man meant no harm to Max on this occasion, but that didn't mean he wanted to join the great unwashed either.  The barn lacked home comforts, one of which was a proper bathroom.

Zack sat at the table behind her, drinking coffee while she scrubbed the frying pan and plates.  "So, you really happy with Logan?" he asked curiously.

Max stopped what she was doing and turned to look at him directly.  "Would I stay if I wasn't?  Look, Zack, I know you don't approve, but for whatever reason, the cosmic fates dictated that Logan and I hook up.  You're just gonna have to accept that."

"You picked out any names for the baby yet?"

"Hiram," she grinned.

"Seriously, Max?"

"No.  And the answer is, I'm not sayin'.  You'll just have to find out later."

Zack grinned at her and left the house, shutting the door softly behind him.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:**  The usual applies.

**A/N:**  Many thanks to alaidh and catherder for the beta.

**Chapter 10**

Max sat in one of the hard wooden kitchen chairs, a dishtowel over her shoulder, and stared out of the grimy kitchen window at the gray sky.  It was a typical late winter's day – cool and overcast.  Perfect weather for what Lydecker planned, provided he didn't expect help from a weather satellite.  Too much moon was certainly not going to be a problem.

They had spent two days on preparation and on just keeping busy.  Syl and Krit had cleared a path across the yard for Logan, who could now freely come and go from the house.  Zack and Alec had taken another drive into town and managed to bring the Aztek back with them.  It wouldn't be used on the raid, but at least it meant that they wouldn't have any problems getting home when the time came.  They had also left Beverly's car parked on a side street.  Logan had called her and told her where she could find it.  Being a Seattle ME, it wasn't hard for Beverly to get out of the city.

Max put her feet up on another chair and leaned back comfortably for a few minutes, enjoying the peace of the morning.  She could see Alec and Krit installing equipment in the interior of a dark-colored van.  They had the back off a large device and were peering into the workings.  There was a pair of hand-held radios on the table.  One suddenly crackled to life and Krit's voice came through loud and clear.

"Max, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear.  Looks like you got it working again."

"Yeah, for sure.  Out."

Max gave a small smile and left the radio on the table.  She tossed the dishtowel over to the sink, and walked inside.  "Can I come in?" she asked, knocking on the bathroom door.

"Sure."  Logan reached back and unlocked the door.  She squeezed past him and sat on the closed lid of the toilet.  It had taken several months for Logan to get over his embarrassment at having someone other than Bling witness his bathroom rituals.  He had blushed bright red the first time Max had walked in on him, and since that time, Max had always made a point of knocking first.  On this occasion, however, he was just packing away a tube of toothpaste in the small zip-topped toiletries bag he carried in his backpack. 

"Mind if I use some toothpaste?" Max asked, picking up a new toothbrush from the sink.

"Go ahead."

"They fixed the radio, by the way."

"Looks like we're good to go for tonight."

"Yeah."

Max stood up and leaned over the sink, studying Logan's face in the mirror as she brushed her teeth.  He looked strained – tired.  His eyes were red-rimmed and his usual scruff was fast becoming a full beard.  None of them had slept much in the last few days, and Logan, when he had slept, had had his rest interrupted by a series of nightmares.  Either Max had woken him when he started to thrash, or he had woken himself.  The tension of waiting had taken its toll on all of them.

Zack had spent most of his time closeted with Lydecker, putting together a detailed plan, while Alec, Syl, and Krit had checked and rechecked equipment and come and gone on various errands, leaving Logan to his computer and Max feeling almost completely useless.  It was frustrating to Max that the other X5s were treating her like an invalid.  She had helped with checking the gear and packing it securely, even with cleaning guns (much as she hated to handle them), and as a last resort, had attempted to repair the exoskeleton, but the burnt out circuit and damaged board had defied her efforts and she eventually just packed it into the back of the Aztek – out of sight, out of mind.

"Max?"  Logan's voice brought her back to the present.  She had spaced so long that even he had noticed.  "Are you with us?"

"Hmmm?"  She finished brushing, rinsed the brush and her mouth and handed it to him to put in the bag.

*~*~*~

Logan braced himself against the metal table in the back of the van, holding on tight with both hands.  The laptop slid alarmingly.  He wedged it between his chest and the bolted down radio, regretting the bad decision that had made him get it out so soon.  The engine of the van strained as it bumped up the dirt track, the occasional branch swishing along the roof and sides, until they reached the designated rendezvous.  It was a relief to stop.  He heard the other vehicles pull up behind them.  Max flung open the sliding door, making him start.

"Hey, you okay in there?"

"Yeah, sure," Logan replied, hands flying over the keyboard.

There was a frisson of electricity in the air outside the van.  Lydecker crouched on the ground beside the doorway, lighting the diagram of the facility with a torch, and going over the plan one last time, while Logan hacked into the system and set up the fake camera feeds.

"Okay, I'm done," Logan said over his shoulder.  "I've disabled the security system and set up the fake camera feeds.  You'll be invisible to them."  He released his brakes and turned to face the doorway, maneuvering cautiously in the cramped confines of the van.  Just getting in had been a nightmare.  He had stubbornly refused any assistance.  Max and Alec had both rolled their eyes but left him to it.  They hadn't even watched as he grabbed the doorframe and pulled himself awkwardly up.

Lydecker nodded curtly and continued his dialogue, while Logan again pivoted and sat in the doorway facing out.  Max, leaning against the van, reached up a hand for his and squeezed for a moment, her mind drifting back to another time and place – before another mission.

"I know you're not too chill with what's going on tonight and I thank you for keeping your concerns to yourself. It's a bitch psyching yourself up for battle when people are throwing around words like 'deathwatch.'"

_"Well, I think I know you well enough by now. There's no stopping you if there's something you need to do, especially when it comes to your family."_

_"You're my family as much as anyone, only we're never going to be any kind of anything if it keeps on like this."_

_"I know."_

_"One way or another, after tomorrow the world's going to be a different place for me, for both of us."_

_"Everything's going to be all right."_

Max's head screamed at her.  _It wasn't all right at all, not then.  This time?  Well, I'm not going in, am I?  I can only hope it'll all work out._  She wondered briefly if the others had similar thoughts.  The faces were grim, almost expressionless.  Even Alec looked serious.  She wondered at his willingness to stay and help out and then realized that he did care, that he wasn't as flaky as he often appeared; he had a past he'd rather forget as well.  She forgot that sometimes.  He'd been there longer than any of them.

"Jackson will liaise with you at the lookout point," Lydecker was saying.  "He and Morrison will stay there.  Zack and Alec – will go in the front.  Syl, Krit – are you ready to take the back door?"

"We're good to go," responded Syl, adjusting the straps on her backpack.  She carried an assortment of gear that they'd need to climb over the wall and breach the rear doors in order to set up a diversion, if it was required.  Otherwise, they were just there to guide people out of the building.

"Okay, move on out, people.  Time is wasting."  Lydecker and Max watched the two teams go.  Max marveled at Lydecker's stony expression, devoid of all emotion – the man was totally under control.  She turned away to find Logan offering his hand to help her up into the van.  For once, Max didn't bat it away, but gripped his fingers and lightly stepped up.  Logan looked at her in surprise for a moment, then turned his attention back to the computer screen.  A few minutes later, Zack's voice came through his headset.  "We're goin' in.  You ready to guide us through?"

"I'm ready, Zack."

"And so am I," added Max, donning her own headset.

Lydecker climbed in and slid the door shut.  He grabbed a third headset and settled in the chair on Logan's left.

"We're knockin' on the back door." Syl's voice came through loud and clear.  Logan quickly switched cameras to catch Syl and Krit at the rear – Krit dealing with the door lock.

"Logan, we're at the main corridor.  Can you override the locks so we can get in?"  Alec's voice was crisp – efficient.

Logan's fingers flew.  "You're in.  Hit the switch."  Logan zoomed the camera in both directions along the corridor and saw Alec's satisfied grin as the reinforced glass and steel security door slid open.  Zack could be seen putting the final touches to trussing up a guard.  His final move was to drag the man's inert body out of sight behind the security desk.  His presence would be missed, but with luck, there would be a big enough window of opportunity between patrols for them to get the job done.

Logan scanned the passages ahead of them, checking the side entrances and crossing hallways.  "Unfriendlies, second corridor on the right, 'bout half way down."

"What're they doing?" Alec asked.

"Having a meeting," Max grinned faintly.  

"Talking outside a door."  Logan's mouth twitched at Max's response.

"Syl, Krit?"

"We're in the kitchen," Krit responded.  His voice sounded strangely muffled.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," responded Syl.  "He's stuffing his face."

"Krit, get your mind on the job," Lydecker interrupted.

"Okay, we're at the storeroom.  We'll have the charges ready in a few minutes."

"Good," said Lydecker.  "As soon as you're done, get upstairs and help out Alec and Zack."

Krit tossed his apple-core into a convenient trashcan and wiped his hands on his pants.  Syl rolled her eyes.  "Come on, Porky, gotta roll."

*~*~*~

"Logan, what're they doing now?" Alec whispered into the headset.

"Still yapping," Logan responded.  It was the faintest hint of a joke.  "Wait.  One of them's gone back in.  The other is headed your way."

Alec nodded at Zack and slipped off his backpack.  As the man stepped into the corridor, Alec grabbed his arm and sent him flying into the wall opposite.  His head connected – hard – and he slumped to the floor, out cold.  

"One down," Zack said into the mic.  "Logan, how's it look up ahead?"  

Logan hit a few keys and scanned the next couple of corridors, while in a smaller window he watched Alec strip the man laid out on the floor of his white coat and put it on himself.  "Nice disguise, Alec," commented Max.

"I'm the chameleon," he responded.  "Watch me vanish."

"All clear, Zack," interjected Logan, wondering briefly if things weren't going too smoothly so far.

Alec and Zack turned at the second corridor, which was the designated location of the first group of female transgenics in the building, according to earlier investigations.  They almost immediately found the passage blocked by a steel security gate, located in the blind spot between two cameras.  "Logan, got another door here.  Can you open it?"  Zack asked.

"Give me a…"

Zack grinned as the gate swung open and flashed into view.  Alec had found a security swipe-card in the pocket of the coat.  "Never mind – we're in."

"Looks like I'm redundant, you gotta key."

"Syl, Krit, check in," grated Lydecker.

"We're in corridor D17 approaching the fire stairs."

Logan's fingers flew over the keyboard, changing the view on the monitor yet again.  He was just in time to see Alec enter a side room, then managed to swap to the camera inside the room.  Alec officiously walked up to a male on duty.  Logan heard him say suspiciously, "Who are…" before Alec knocked him out with a quick swipe of his fist.

"Your worst nightmare, kid," Alec responded to the inert form.

Zack slammed open an internal glass security door.  "Okay, ladies, up and at 'em!"

There was a collective stirring of heads from the ten or so beds in the room, then a voice said from the back, "We're handcuffed to the beds."

Zack looked at the roomful of expectant faces and thought, _Oh hell!_  "Alec, need your help here."

"Zack, what's up?" Max asked.  The microphone hadn't picked up what had been said.

"They got 'em handcuffed to the beds."

Logan and Max exchanged concerned looks.  

"No keys," said Alec, frisking down the guard-cum-nurse.  He shrugged at Zack.  "This is gonna take awhile the old-fashioned way."

"Syl, Krit, we need you up here now!" Zack's tone was urgent.

"Nearly there," Syl replied.

Max half-turned her swiveling chair, looking toward the door of the van.  Logan and Lydecker both looked at her.  "What's the matter?" Logan asked.

"Thought I heard something."

"They knew we were coming," Lydecker stated matter-of-factly.

Max and Logan both looked at him aghast.

"Alec, Zack, Syl, Krit – abort!" 

"What's the matter?" Zack asked urgently.

"It's a trap.  Get out of there, Zack."  Max's tone was grim.  She flinched as the van door was flung open.  


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer:**  Same applies.

**A/N:**  Many thanks to alaidh and catherder for the beta.  Stick with me now, coz we're in the home stretch – just a couple of chapters to go.

**Chapter 11**

Logan hit a single key on the computer, severing the satellite link, and half turned to face whatever came in the door.  Max swung around and up onto her feet, her elbow connecting hard with the first man in the door.  He collapsed to the ground outside the van with a gasp.  She wasn't so lucky with the second.  He hit her with a blast from his taser that sent her flying back into the table.

"Max!" Logan was reaching for his gun, but he was too late.  Two more men boarded the vehicle, one holding a gun to Lydecker's head even as he reached to free his weapon, and the other knocking Logan out with a quick blow to the side of the head.

Max came around a few minutes later to find herself securely tied to a chair. She shook her head and looked around, seeing Logan still unconscious in his wheelchair and Lydecker, also tied to his chair, watching her with shrewd blue eyes.  She ignored Lydecker and concentrated all her strength and energy on one heave in an attempt to break her bonds.  The plastic ties bit into her flesh painfully, but held for the time being, although she thought they might have stretched a little.  They had not only tied her hands together behind her back, but also to the stem that held the seat back.  They had, however, left her legs free, and she reached out a toe and kicked at the wheelchair, trying to get Logan's attention.  "Wake up!"  She waited hopefully.  "Hey, wake up!"  She gave the chair a harder kick.  This time it creaked and rocked slightly.  Logan's eyes slowly opened.

"Well, this is another fine mess you've gotten us into, Stanley," Max smiled at him ironically.

Logan winced and attempted to straighten up – no easy matter with his hands tied behind his back.

"Anybody got any thoughts on how we can get outta here?" Max asked.   Logan shook his head in response, while Lydecker maintained his stony silence.  Max was slowly working at her bonds, gradually stretching the tight bands of plastic, but it was tough going, even for her.

The door of the van slid open and all three turned their heads toward the sound.  "Well, what do we have here?" the speaker smiled coldly.  "How are you doing, Don?  Sorry you didn't join us now?"

Lydecker snorted derisively.  "I'll never join your little group, and you know it."

The intruder was a trim guy in his late forties with curly light brown hair, and dressed in fatigues.  He stood alertly just outside the van, out of range of Max's feet, studying the three of them with cold blue eyes.  "I must say, I never expected to find you in company with a cripple and a breeder."  Max winced at the description and glanced briefly at Logan, who was staring at the man impassively.  She knew from experience that he didn't really care what anyone said about him, but as soon as they passed a comment about her, his blood pressure started to rise.

"You won't win," stated Lydecker firmly.

"Really?  My team is already rounding up your strike team inside the building."

"Yeah, right."  Max's tone was heavily sarcastic.

"Sorry we missed you in the market the other day.  I believe you and your friend put on quite an impressive display.  You'd have been spared a lot of discomfort if you'd come along quietly."

Max rolled her eyes.  "Who the hell are you?"

The man nodded at Logan.  "I take it you're the one who hacked into our system.  That was good work."  Logan's face remained expressionless.  "Pity it was all for nothing."

"If you say so," responded Lydecker.

The door slid shut again, and the three of them were alone once more.  "You have such nice friends," commented Max dryly.

"_He_ was never a friend of mine," Lydecker responded, his loathing rising to the surface.

"Who is he, exactly?" asked Logan finally.

"Name's Reid.  Formerly of Manticore.  He's one of Renfro's pets from across the country."

"Ah, now that explains his bubbly," Max grunted, "light-hearted," she continued, "personality."  Max's shoulders heaved for a third and final time, and she finally extracted her hands from behind her, shaking them to restore circulation and giving a triumphant grin.  There were bleeding strips on her wrists where she'd forced her hands apart, stretching the plastic ties.  Logan frowned at the sight, but didn't comment, as Max seemed totally unconcerned.  All she did was rub her wrists and say, "They gotta get a better supplier for those things.  The one they're usin' just ain't cuttin' it."  She raised an eyebrow.  "Either of you got a knife?"

"Front right pocket," responded Lydecker.  "On the keychain."

"They left you your keys?  Tsk tsk, how inefficient."

Max stood up quickly and almost immediately put out a hand for support as she was assailed by a wave of dizziness.  She found the edge of the table and stood there swaying, her face drained of color.  Logan caught the change and asked, immediately concerned, "You okay?"

She closed her eyes and nodded, choking back the bile that threatened to erupt.  "I'm fine…just got up too quickly."

Logan wasn't appeased by her words – he still looked at her in concern.  She ignored him and stuck a hand into Lydecker's pocket, coming up with a large bunch of keys on a metal ring.  She quickly sorted out a small Swiss Army Knife from the bunch and opened out the blade.

She was standing behind Logan, hacking away at the tough plastic wrapped around his wrists, when they all heard the distant sound of a small explosion and some desultory gunfire.  It sharpened her resolution and she quickly sawed through the plastic.

*~*~*~

Zack and Alec blurred along the corridor with one of the female transgenics they had already released from her bonds – a tall, striking ash-blonde with lightly freckled skin.  They'd left one of the others to deal with the remainder and were now in a race against time to save the babies.  The threat had been made to gas them all if any of the females attempted to escape, and Cassie didn't believe that was an idle threat.

*~*~*~

Original Cindy jerked awake in bed, feeling suddenly afraid.  The previous afternoon, every second messenger had asked her about Max, and even Normal had asked after her sistah-girl.  She didn't have any answers for them.  Cindy gave up trying to sleep and made a cup of coffee.  She stood beside the big picture windows in the living room of the apartment, looking out at the darkness.

*~*~*~

Cassie launched herself at the locked door of the nursery, bursting the lock.  The babies were unattended, and gas was already pouring out of a vent in the ceiling.  There was no time for finesse.  The three of them started roughly shoving the dozen or so plastic cribs out into the hall, pushing them away from the creeping death.

"This all there is?" Alec asked, as the last squalling infant, a tiny baby labeled 498A on a card taped to the top of the crib, made it outside.

"Yeah," answered Cassie, shutting the door behind them as best she could on buckled hinges.  "For a breeding program, they sure haven't had much success so far."

"Certainly looks that way."  Alec snickered and rubbed his chest, remembering Max's reaction to another "breeding" program, then he lifted one of the doors into place, sealing the gap a bit more.

A group of freed X-series females rounded the corner, while Syl and Krit arrived from the opposite end of the corridor.

"We need to blow this joint before they start cauterizing," Syl said seriously.

*~*~*~

Max stood on Logan's lap, peering out through the air vent in the ceiling of the van.  She'd tried the table first, but had been at full stretch in order to get close enough to push the vent up.  There wasn't much she could see – it was dark and her view was straight over the roof of the van, but she could at least hear some of what transpired outside.

She had heard a series of smaller bangs that seemed to come from the direction of the complex.  "Sounds like they're blowing the place up," she said quietly, concern etched into every feature.  She tuned her hearing, picking out Reid's voice – shouting.

"…I don't care what they did!  Lock it down!  Now!"

"Oh boy, he sure is pissed," she commented.  She shifted her weight, wobbling on her precarious perch.  Logan tightened his grip on her legs, steadying her.  "You okay down there?" she asked softly.

"Fine."

Max released her grip on the lip of the air vent, put a hand on Logan's shoulder and awkwardly stepped down.

"What's the plan, boys?" she asked, feeling more confident.

*~*~*~

Max quietly slid the van door open and quickly wrapped an arm around the guard outside, dropping him gently to the ground, unconscious.  She gestured for Lydecker to get down.  Lydecker disarmed the guard, quickly disappearing behind the van and into the woods.  Her presence outside the van was quickly noticed, despite the silence of her exit.  Three "soldiers" came running.  _Sorry, baby, this is gonna be a rough ride,_ she thought, crouching into a fighting stance.  Two of the men closed with her, while the third made the mistake of getting too close to the van. Logan launched himself out the doorway, wheelchair and all, bringing him to the ground with a bone-jarring thud, the wheelchair tumbling down on top of them.  The soldier immediately tried to heave him off.  Logan leaned forward, an arm across his opponent's shoulders and pulled his right arm behind him, bending it up – painfully judging by the grunt – and effectively immobilizing him for the present.

Max still had her hands full with the other two.  She could feel that her coordination was off – almost as if she hadn't completely shaken her earlier dizziness.  Logan was helpless to do anything but watch as she reeled under a couple of blows, but then she seemed to rally.  She threw one of her opponents in a high arc behind her and knocked the other flying with a hard right, then spun around, fist held high, feeling a third presence behind her.

"Hey, Max, it's only me," quipped Alec, putting out a restraining hand to stop her.  "There's no need to get violent."

She relaxed her stance and looked around her.  The clearing was suddenly full of transgenics:  pregnant and not so pregnant females, mothers with babies (including one with a twin held in each arm).  Zack was on his knees trussing Logan's prisoner, while Logan was righting the wheelchair and preparing to climb back in.  Max watched him shove the seat cushion into position and roughly lock the brakes with his fist.  She caught his eye and was rewarded with smile and a shrug in response.  "Those jet thrusters came in handy, Superman," she called.  

He shrugged again.  "You're the superhero, I'm the sidekick…"

Zack looked up and caught the by-play, initially scowling but then smiling to himself.  Max looked around as the others cleaned up, taking a quick inventory.  Lydecker was still missing, but his two men, Morrison and Jackson, had two men under guard beside the bus.  Syl and Krit were also not present, but a short broadcast on Zack's two-way radio announced that they were heading out of the facility and would be with them in a few minutes.

Alec had one of Max's "victims" on his stomach and was making use of the man's own restraints on him.  

A single loud shot rang out from close by. Every head turned in the direction of the sound.  That's when the reaction hit Max.  She felt her vision close in and put a hand on Alec's shoulder to steady herself as a wave of dizziness swept over her.  Her stomach rebelled.

"Whoa, Max," Alec looked up at her curiously, sensing the change as she leaned on him.  "Logan!"  Alec's call was none too soon, as Max bent over and the contents of her stomach hit the ground.  Alec was appalled, and Logan looked across in alarm, seeing Alec supporting a doubled-over Max as she held his shoulder for support.  Logan completed the transfer in record time, and quickly trundled across.  He became aware that dawn was approaching. It was light enough to see Max's pallor, that she was shaking.  She looked at Logan through the veil of her hair, her expression totally miserable.

"Hey, you okay?" Logan asked gently.  He gestured for her to sit on his lap, relieving Alec of his role as her support.

"Sorry, Logan," she said softly.  She gave a small, sad sniff.  "I don't know what's wrong."

"Hey, it's okay."  _In sickness and in health, Max,_ he almost added.  He rubbed her back as she leaned into him.  "I think the sooner we get home the better," he added.

"Yeah, I…I want to go home, too."

*~*~*~

"Ness has some medical training," Zack was saying, introducing Max to a dark-haired, olive-skinned transgenic, who carried an infant on her hip.  "Won't you let her look at you?"  Zack looked at her in consternation.  She'd sat quietly on Logan's lap for a few minutes, then hesitantly walked back to the van, where she sat in the doorway, her head against the cool metal of the doorframe.  Her head still swam, and she was aware of flickering lights on the periphery of her visual field, although they seemed to be clearing.

"Zack, I just want to go home," she said, firmly resisting.

His clothing covered in blood, although he seemed otherwise intact, Lydecker marched into the clearing followed by Syl and Krit.  They both looked at Max curiously as Zack and Ness both spoke to her.

"Max, what harm can it do if I just take a quick look at you?" Ness asked calmly.

Logan grimly pushed his way over to them.  "Max, please?" he asked.

"Go away, all of you."  She swung her legs up into the van and sat cross-legged, her back against the wall.  "Just leave me alone, I'll be fine."

Logan flicked his eyes to indicate that the other two should leave him.  He hoisted himself up into the doorway of the van and leaned back on his hands.  Max glanced at him, then looked away.

"You want to tell me what's going on here?" Logan asked gently.

"Nothing.  I'm just sick of them all mothering me.  I'm fine.  I just want to go home."  She turned her head to face him, her eyes boring in.

Logan took her hand in his.  "They care about you.  I care about you."  Even in the dim light, he could see how pale she looked.  Her hand was shaking.  "Look, if you won't do this for Zack, will you do it for me?  Please?"  Logan's expression was troubled.

"What about all those others out there?"  She jerked her chin in the direction of the other transgenics.

"They haven't been involved in hand-to-hand combat with GI Joe and his friend."

"True."  She leaned back against the wall and nodded.  "Okay, I'll talk to her," she said wearily.

Logan's lips twitched into a tiny grin and he immediately slid back down into the wheelchair.  "Thanks, Max."

She shrugged.  "No big dealio."

*~*~*~

Original Cindy wheeled her bike out of the apartment and headed off to work.  She felt less than enthusiastic after her sleepless night, and almost turned around as soon as she hit the street and felt the drizzle on her face.  The rain matched her mood.  She was feeling blue.  "I hope you're all right, boo," she said to the Space Needle, catching a glimpse of its tall profile.  She felt unnerved, as if something was wrong, but couldn't put her finger on it.  With one last look at the threatening sky, she mounted the bike and rode down the street.

* * *


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer****:**  Not mine.

**A/N****:**  Many thanks to the ever faithful betas, catherder and alaidh.  

**Chapter 12**

Cassie jumped down from the van and immediately walked across to Zack, who nodded and smiled, a quick flash of white teeth.  Logan looked at him anxiously, then was distracted as Max climbed out of the back of the van and walked across to him.  "You gonna travel steerage again, or would you prefer first class this time?"

Logan looked at her enquiringly, not quite grasping her meaning, "And that means…"

"We're bustin' outta here, baby…homeward bound," she grinned.

Alec walked over to them, having been approached by Zack.  He held Logan's computer in his hands.  "This was in one of the other vehicles."

"Thanks, Alec."

"You people ready to go?"

Logan gestured with his hand.  "Sure.  Just give us a minute."  He looked back at Max.  "So, you're good to go?"

"Yeah," she looked away quickly as Zack called her name.  Logan took this as his opportunity to check the logistics of climbing into the front of the van.  It was going to be a tight squeeze for the three of them, but doable.

*~*~*~

Logan relaxed into the drive back as soon as they hit the blacktop.  It was tight in the front of the van.  Logan was squeezed into the middle of the seat with Alec and Max on either side, but it was better than traveling in the back.  

The sun was well and truly up on a crisp morning by the time they were ready to go.  It was with a kind of wonder that Logan started up Bessie's engine and started down the dirt track.  Alec immediately scrunched up a sweater to use as a pillow and stretched out across the back seat.  He was asleep – lightly snoring, if it could have been heard over the roar of the engine – within minutes.  She sat quietly beside Logan, her hand resting on his thigh.  He couldn't feel it, but the glance he flicked down and the quick upward turning of his lips when she put it there meant he knew.  She closed her eyes.  _God, I'm tired,_ she thought.  _I don't know how Logan's still functioning._  She wriggled in the seat, making herself more comfortable.  Even without following Lydecker's convoluted directions, it was going to take some three or more hours to get back home.  The roads were not what they were in the early days of the century.  _Home.  How soon do I tell him we're not actually going home yet?_ she pondered.  _Just breathe, Max.  It'll all be good. I just hope we get back to Seattle on time.  Cassie said it'd be hours yet – just the early stages, but you never know. _  She couldn't help the intruding thought that a long night was going to become an even longer day.

*~*~*~

"Bip bip bip."  Original Cindy could hear Normal's voice even before she entered the building.  She almost turned around there and then, but for the fact another messenger pulled up behind her.

"Ah, look who decided to grace us with her presence – late as usual," Normal commented as she walked the bike down the ramp.  He tossed her a package.  "458 Madison…scoot."

"In a minute, Normal," she responded automatically, heading for her locker.

*~*~*~

"You wanna stop and get a bite?" Logan asked.

Max shook her head, "No thanks."

"What, you're not hungry?"

"Not right now."

He looked at her quickly and caught her looking at him oddly.  "You okay?"

"I'm fine."  She shifted uncomfortably, smothering a grunt.  "At least, I will be…" she looked at him hesitantly.

Logan pondered her statement for a moment.  "Okay…" he said slowly.  He pursed his lips and stared at the road ahead.  "Besides, it'll be good to get home."

_Okay, Max, here goes._  "We're not going home – at least, not yet."

Logan pursed his lips again.  "We're not?"  He glanced at her curiously again.  "Where are we going?"

Max paused before speaking.  "Metro Medical," she replied, with half a smile.

The car swerved sharply.

"Squirrel?" she asked, her smile broadening.

"Ah, no, no squirrel…just…" Logan had to think for a moment, half stunned, then he broke into a glowing smile.  "You do mean?"

"Yeah, that's exactly what I mean," she smiled shyly in reply as Logan upped the speed a notch.  It was starting to rain.  The downpour increased in strength the closer they got to home.

"Hey, what gives, man?" asked Alec, pushing himself back onto the seat of the car, from which he'd partially fallen when Logan swerved.

"Nothin', Alec," responded Max.  "Go back to sleep."

"Sure, Max."  He yawned, adjusted the sweater he was leaning on, and closed his eyes again.

Max looked across at Logan, who was smothering a laugh at Alec's total lack of concern.  His expression suddenly turned serious as he said softly, "Will this be okay, I mean…it's a little early, isn't it?"

"Cassie said nothing to worry about – two to three weeks is nothing major.  And you told me yourself that you were in a hurry to be born."

"Yeah, I was.  But I mean…will we get there in time?"

"Logan, it'll be fine.  Honest.  We've got hours…yet."

"You sure?"

"No, I'm not _sure_, I'm just hopin'," she quipped.

They drove in silence for a while.  Max, studying Logan's profile, realized how tired he looked.  His eyes were red-rimmed and there was a deep cut on his cheek where he'd been struck by the gun butt earlier, and his glasses looked a little out of shape.  She thought that he badly needed to shave…the scruff was past the point of being respectable.  "You okay?" he asked her.  "Max?"

"I'm fine."

He glanced at her again, concern replacing the weariCassie in his expression.  "You gonna call Sam?"

She nodded and reached for the phone, detaching it from the hands-free unit on the dashboard.  Her own phone was in her back pack, which Alec had slung into the back.  Max spoke to Logan's surgeon in a soft voice.  He'd been the only doctor they trusted to be directly involved – who knew Max's history – and he would see to it that all went well, even though this was not his specialty.  "What about Original Cindy?"  

Max looked at her watch.  "She'll be at work."  Max called the number of her friend's pager and keyed in the phone number.  "There, satisfied?" she asked.

He nodded and slowed the car, seeing a glimpse of blue in the rear view mirror.  It wouldn't do to be pulled over for speeding.  The motorcycle whizzed past, lights flashing, and Logan gunned the motor again, re-engaged the cruise control and dropped his hand down to his leg, feeling for Max's hand. He left it there, resting lightly on top.

*~*~*~

Original Cindy's mood, and her feeling that something wasn't quite right, didn't improve as the morning went on.  She delivered her packages, but was surly in the extreme.

"Hey, what's up with you?" Sketchy asked, when she'd threatened to put the smack down for the third time.  "I didn't do nothin'.  You get up on the wrong side'a bed or something?"

"Hmmf," she sniffed.  "You wouldn't understand."

"Argh…I'm not gonna put up with this."  Sketchy gathered up his sandwich, climbed over the railing and dropped down onto the sofa on the lower level of Jam Pony.

Original Cindy sighed and walked down the stairs to join him.  "Sorry, Sketchy.  Guess I'm kinda out of sorts today.  Just had this feeling in my bones…you know…that somethin's goin' down…"

Sketchy rolled his eyes.  "Women!"

She smacked him, not too gently, in the shoulder with her fist, and laughed for the first time all day.

*~*~*~

Logan tapped his hand impatiently on the steering wheel.  The line of traffic into Tacoma stretched as far as the eye could see – a combination of construction and a sector point had slowed the mid-morning traffic to a crawl.

Max felt a stronger contraction course through her.  Logan quickly looked at her, catching the look of intense concentration on her face.  Her fingers grasped his leg tightly, although he couldn't feel it.

"Okay?"

"Logan, I'll tell you when I'm not, right?"

"Okay."  He looked hurt by her reaction.

"Sorry, just not used to being…"

"Mothered?"

"Yeah."

Alec stirred.  "Hey, guys, what's goin' on?"

"Wow, Sleeping Beauty's awake."

"Ah, construction and we're almost at the first sector point," Logan replied, ignoring Max's sarcasm.

"Sorry, haven't stopped anywhere."

Alec grumbled in response and turned his body to sit up in the seat properly instead of lying across it.  He yawned and stretched expansively.  Max dialed the number of Original Cindy's pager again, then tried to call Jam Pony, but the line was either busy or there was some other problem, because all she got was a loud buzzing on the line.

*~*~*~

Original Cindy's pager beeped and blinked where she'd left it on the kitchen counter that morning.

*~*~*~

"What's with the phones today?" Max asked, slamming Logan's phone shut.  She'd just left a third message on the pager and tried Jam Pony again.

"Ah, gotta love Post-Pulse technology."

Max glared and reached forward to put the phone back in its bracket.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer**: The usual. Not mine, never will be. 

**A/N**: Many thanks to the ever faithful catherder and alaidh for the beta.

**Chapter 13**

Logan waited anxiously outside the door of the public bathroom, impatiently waiting for Max. "Max…" He tapped hesitantly on the door. "You okay in there?" There was the sound of a flush and then running water before Max emerged shaking water from her hands.

"No towels," she said by way of explanation and rolled her eyes. She took a couple of steps, then hesitated, putting a hand against the wall for support.

"Max?"

She put her free hand up in a "wait" gesture and took a couple of deep breaths. "I'm okay, really," she said, seeing Logan's worried expression. As if to prove a point, she set off firmly, but more slowly, down the corridor to the elevator. Sam had been going to meet them at reception, but when a call to his pager failed to gain a response, Logan had suggested that they go up to his office on the second floor.

Max, lost in her thoughts, didn't really register that Logan was having problems with locomotion until she caught him peering intently at one of the wheels while they waited for the elevator.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. Chair's a bit…wonky."

"Wonky?"

"Yeah, you know, not running like it should…wonky."

"I know the meaning of the word. Just never thought I'd hear you use it."

Logan shrugged.

"Anyway, you did try to teach it to fly. Must've bent it or something."

"Yeah, or something…"

The ping of the elevator caused them to drop the discussion. They waited while the passengers exited before entering. "Ya know, this would be just the wrong time for a brown-out," commented Max.

"Hospital's got a generator," Logan smiled back. He straightened up wearily, looking up at her as she leaned against the side wall.

"Ya know, a couple of days ago, I promised myself that I was gonna kick your ass for what you did."

"And now?"

"I'm…not so sure," she said thoughtfully, rubbing her back. "Still, you should have told me what was going on."

"You're right, Max, I should've, and then you'd have tried to stop me going…and…" Logan's tone was biting.

"Right," she nodded. "But there's some chance we wouldn't be…I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that." She'd seen the stricken expression on his face. She shrugged. "These things happen. Babies come when they're ready…and maybe you should be kicking my ass instead," she said grinning.

The elevator came to a halt and the doors opened, putting a stop to further talk.

-----------------------

"Mr Cale, Mrs Cale," Sam's receptionist smiled brightly at the disheveled pair as they entered the office. "Dr Carr said for you to wait in his office. He'll be here shortly."

_Honestly,_ Max thought, looking at both herself and Logan, _We look like a pair of punks. _Logan had a large purple bruise on his cheek with a deep, open cut running through the center. The swelling caused an imperfection that upset the symmetry of his face. He looked exhausted. There was dirt from the forest floor on the knees of his jeans. She suspected that she didn't look much better.

Max, entering Sam's office, immediately looked for a chair and noted that she had exactly three choices – Sam's desk chair, the examination table or a standard, hospital-issue clunker of a wheelchair shoved into a corner. To Logan's amusement, she roughly kicked up the footrests on the wheelchair and sat there, figuring Sam would want his chair at some stage. She leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes. "God, I'm so tired," she groaned.

Logan snorted. "I thought you didn't sleep."

She grinned back at him, eyes still closed. "Riiggghttt…"

"Guess not many of Sam's patients need chairs," he said, looking back over his shoulder as he heard a familiar voice from outside.

"Guess."

Sam bustled in and closed the door behind him. Logan swiveled to face the doctor and Max opened her eyes and straightened up. "Hey, Sam."

"Hey, Logan. You look like hell – both of you."

"Gee, thanks, Sam," responded Logan.

"What the hell have you been doing?"

"Believe me, you don't want to know," replied Max. She grimaced and took a deep breath.

Sam looked at her, his expression concerned. "Up on the table, let's take a look at you."

Max nodded compliantly. "I…know this isn't really your field, and I really appreciate what you're doing."

Sam nodded briskly, pushing up Max's sleeve so he could take her blood pressure. "I haven't really done this since I was an intern, but I have assisted at a few deliveries – patients of mine…"

"Right," she replied hesitantly.

"And there's some help coming from Terminal City…just in case."

Max smiled and relaxed, while Logan hovered nervously, watching Sam's examination.

"Okay," Sam gave Max a hand to sit up on the narrow table. "I'll get my secretary to deal with a few formalities and we'll get you into a room." He stuck his head out the door and issued a couple of instructions to his secretary.

He walked around Logan and leaned back against his desk, legs crossed. "I don't think I need to confirm what you already know. It'll be a while yet – you're still in the first stage. I know it's a little early, but everything should be fine."

Max nodded and Logan took her hand, feeling relieved.

"Now, while we're waiting, do you want me to clean up that cut?" Sam asked Logan, gesturing at his face.

"Might as well."

"You two look like…"

"I know. I'm surprised they let us in," acknowledged Logan with a wry expression.

"And I take it the exoskeleton…"

"Busted."

Sam nodded.

Sam tipped some antiseptic solution out of a bottle onto a pad of cotton and proceeded to gently clean the cut. Logan grimaced as the astringent solution hit the open wound. He finished up by holding the two sides of the cut together with a butterfly bandage. "That should be okay, I hope. You probably should have a couple of stitches there…"

"But knowing me and needles…"

"Coward," commented Max, causing Logan to glare at her.

The button on the telephone lit up and the phone buzzed softly. Sam took the call.

"Thanks, Sarah. You can go when you're ready." He hung up and looked at them. "Okay, got a room, let's go."

--------------------

Sam escorted them to a private room and then left them alone, after suggesting that Max make use of the shower and change into the oh-so-elegant hospital gown a nurse handed to her. She pulled a wry face and said she would. He promised to be back in a while, but he had patients to see, and…

Logan waited for Max to emerge from the tiny private bathroom, tiredly staring out the window at a bleak, gray sky as he did. His head throbbed – partly as a result of being hit, partly as a result of a day and a half without sleep. Exhaustion was seeping into his very bones. He felt tired and hungry. Neither of them had eaten since the night before.

Max came out of the bathroom, her hair still wrapped in a towel, and smiled. "Hot shower and I'm good to go." She flicked a glance at the bed, but instead sank into a chair next to Logan. "So," she said.

"So," Logan responded.

She leaned back in the chair and rolled her head, easing the kinks in her neck, which persisted despite the shower. The water hadn't really been that hot, just barely tepid.

"You want me to massage your back?" Logan asked.

"Mmm, that would be nice." She swung around sideways on the chair as he moved back alongside, leaning her shoulder against its high back. Logan adjusted the position of the wheelchair so that he was as close as he could get and locked the brakes. He rubbed his hands together briefly to warm them up and then started working on her neck, pressing his thumbs into the tight muscles on either side. Max leaned back into him, creating more pressure. She wondered whether Zack and the others had managed to get the mistreated and misled female transgenics to safety, and her brows knit as she considered how they got themselves caught like that, and who was the sperm donor. Cassie had said during their brief conversation that they weren't using ordinary human sperm, but that they had some special donor.

Logan paused in his ministrations to undo the back of the gown, a ticklish movement that raised goosebumps in Max's flesh and sent a tingle down her spine. She took a deep breath as she felt a contraction starting. They were becoming stronger, slowly but surely. Sam had said to them both several times that, with Max's odd genetics, he wasn't sure what to expect when delivery time came, so to come to the hospital sooner rather than later…well here they were…Logan shifted his point of operation further down. Max found it soothing. He was good at this, had always been good at it, but Max and Bling had taught him a few more techniques that made it even better. "Relax, Max, you're so tense…" His long, strong fingers kneaded the tight muscles. Her back had been aching on and off since that day in the markets – was that four or three or five days ago, she couldn't remember. She was tired and afraid – afraid of what she had done, afraid of what was to come. She moaned softly, a combination of pain and pleasure.

"Did I hurt you?" Logan asked, concerned.

"No, that's good, keep going, please…"

He grinned and exhaled a warm, sharp breath across her shoulder.

-------------------------

Alec had been trying to track down Original Cindy for several hours. He had gotten hold of Marianne Cale easily enough. She said she'd wait at her office until he dropped off both Max's gear and Original Cindy, but Original Cindy was proving elusive, and she wasn't answering her pager. He turned the car in the direction of Jam Pony, parked and forced his way down the ramp against a tide of riders just heading out on late runs. "Yo, Normal, you seen OC anywhere?"

"Do I look like her social secretary?" Normal replied crankily.

"What's up with you?" asked Alec, unaccustomed to Normal taking out his moods on him.

"She hasn't come back from her last run, surprise, surprise," Normal responded, then muttered half under his breath, "Probably won't. I'm understaffed as it is…"

"Thanks, Normal."

"And where the fire truck is Max?"

Alec turned to go. "Metro Medical, if you must know." With that, Alec strode back up the ramp, ignoring Normal's startled stare and considering his options as he left. He walked down the road to Crash – it was early, but at least he could leave a message there for her to call Logan's phone.

A stop at the apartment on Waverly revealed why Original Cindy wasn't answering her pager. With a soft, "Damn," he picked it up from the counter, looked at it, and put it down again. He grabbed a soda from the fridge and made himself comfortable on the sofa while he thought about what to do next. Feeling himself starting to doze off, he straightened up and left the apartment abruptly, leaving the empty soda can on the coffee table. He decided to head for the penthouse – at least he could collect Max's bag from there while he waited. That's when Logan's phone finally rang. "Hello?"

"Alec, what's up? What're you doing with Logan's phone? Why've you been leaving messages for me at Crash?

"Where have you been? I've been looking for you everywhere!"

"I had some stuff to take care of," she answered vaguely. "What's so urgent? And what have you done with my girl?"

"She's at Metro Medical with Logan."

"Oh…is she all right?"

"Yeah, but she wants you there. Where are you?" Alec could hear voices and loud music in the background.

"Crash."

"I'll pick you up outside."

---------------------------

Max gently removed her hand from Logan's grasp and slid out of the bed. Darkness had already covered the scene outside, which was lit by pinpricks of lights from the buildings, streets and cars. Logan stirred, rustling the sheets. She'd sent him out for a while to get some dinner an hour or so earlier, amused by the growling of his stomach. On his return, he'd sat with her, head nodding, just holding her hand, until he couldn't keep his eyes open any longer. His head had dropped down to his arm on the side of the bed, and he'd dozed off.

Max stared at the peaceful night scene, then turned to look at the exhausted man, smiling. He looked so peaceful. She took a step back toward the bed, then stopped as a strong contraction coursed through her. "Oh, hell," she said, putting a hand out to steady herself against the window frame. She felt moisture running down her leg, the trickle soon becoming a gush. "Logan! Logan! Wake up!"

"Hmm? Max?" He sat up slowly.

Max froze, looking at him in consternation, not sure how she should be reacting – embarrassed…annoyed…afraid. "I...ah…I feel like I just peed my pants," she said, her expression wry.

Logan hit the call button to summon a nurse, then came around the side of the bed. He picked up the still damp towel she'd used earlier from the back of the chair and sat there, unsure what to do next. "Um, Logan, you wanna give me a hand here."

"Yeah, what…"

"Give me the towel," she said. She roughly scrubbed herself down, leaning her weight on the windowsill then dropped the towel on the floor and swizzed it around with her foot and kicked it into the corner.

A nurse appeared at the door as Max kicked the towel away. She took Logan's shoulder firmly, grimacing and leaning heavily for the couple of steps back to the bed.

Logan looked at the woman and said, "Can you page Sam Carr, please? Now!"

A/N: This is my second attempt at uploading this. The first time, it seems that FFN ate all my spacers. I've also fixed the DarkCassie, lol.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer:**  See the other 13 chapters.  Nothing has changed!

**A/N**:  Many thanks to alaidh and catherder, my ever-faithful betas, who have been with me throughout this ride.  This is it, folks.  Enjoy!

Chapter 14 

By the time Alec dropped Original Cindy outside Marianne Cale's fancy downtown office, it was well after closing time.  The lawyer had evidently been waiting for them as she immediately let herself out of the locked building and ushered OC in the direction of a silver Mercedes parked on the street.  Original Cindy's eyes widened when she realized that Marianne was also pregnant, although obviously not as advanced as Max, but she refrained from commenting. 

The two women walked into the hospital just as the announcement signaling the end of visiting hours sounded, and asked for Max by name.  The receptionist gave them the room number and floor, then said, "But visiting hours are over."

Original Cindy held up the suitcase she was carrying.  "I got her stuff."

The receptionist pointed in the direction of the elevators.  "Room 354 and I didn't see you."

Original Cindy nodded, "Thanks."

Max's room seemed to be full of people.  OC recognized the field medic from Terminal City, and there was a bald-headed man she rightly assumed to be the doctor.  Logan was holding Max's hand, or maybe she was holding his – Cindy wasn't sure.  Max looked at the two newcomers helplessly.  "Logan?" she ground out.

Logan looked over his shoulder to see who it was.  "Waiting room down the hall," he mouthed.  Marianne nodded and steered OC back down the hall.

---------------------

_This is whack,_ thought Original Cindy, pouring herself and Marianne coffee from the machine.  _First sistah-girl disappears for, like, a week, and now this?  Looks like this is gonna be a long night._

--------------------

"Logan, wake up," Marianne's voice insisted. He was so tired. He didn't want to wake up, but then she jabbed him in the shoulder, hard, and he was forced to open his eyes.  "Come on, Sleeping Beauty, you're home."

"Oh, thanks, Marianne."  He pushed himself upright, away from the car door, and waited while she popped the trunk and brought around the pieces of the wheelchair for him to assemble.  He took a moment to look behind him curiously and realized that she'd already dropped off Original Cindy at her place.  He transferred tiredly and said, "Thanks for the ride, Marianne.  Goodnight."

Marianne grinned at his retreating back.  "Goodnight, Logan.  Get some sleep," she said gently.

"Thanks, I will."

She watched him push up to the front door and fumble in his pocket for Max's keys.  Once he'd swiped the card through the slot to open the electric doors and given her a brief wave, she turned to go.  Logan made his slow way to the elevator and then up to the penthouse, jerking awake with a start when the elevator pinged.  He dully registered that the apartment door wasn't locked and realized why when he saw Alec's prostrate form asleep on the sofa, wrapped in a blanket.  Logan was happy to see that Alec had brought the exoskeleton upstairs and left it propped against the wall in the exercise room.  He made his way to the bedroom, where he tossed Zack's shoes into the corner, put his glasses on the night stand, transferred, and proceeded to go to sleep still fully dressed.

-------------------

Max gazed at the fine crop of dark-colored down on her son's head.  The few short hours of sleep she'd had through the early hours of the morning had left her feeling refreshed.  _Thanks, Manticore.  I guess there's something to be said for screwed genetics, after all,_ she thought, running her finger over the baby's tiny, perfect hand. 

------------------

"…still asleep."  The voices came from the kitchen – two of them – Alec and…someone else…talking softly.  Logan opened his eyes unwillingly, blinking into the bright sunlight spilling from the window.  It bathed the room in golden light.  He reached for his glasses and squinted into the brightness to read his watch, discovering that it was nearly 9:00 am already.  He slowly pushed up into a sitting position and let his legs dangle over the side of the bed.  He flexed his aching hand where Max had squeezed it during the course of the night's events.  _She doesn't know her own strength,_ he reflected ruefully.  After completing a slow transfer and shoving on some shoes, he looked down at his rumpled clothes and sighed, then decided that'd keep until later.  Considering the events of the last few days, a few creases were of little importance.  He slowly made his way out to the kitchen to find Alec and Zack drinking coffee.  Alec automatically poured out another cup.  His appearance caused a lull in the conversation.  Logan sat quietly, waiting for the caffeine to kick in.  Zack and Alec looked at each other and grinned, feeling a little embarrassed.

"Well?" asked Zack finally.

"Hmmm?  Well what?" Logan responded, still only half awake.

"How does it feel?" 

"How does what feel?"

Zack rolled his eyes, thinking that Logan really was being excessively stupid this morning, more so than usual for a stubborn ordinary who had driven his sister so far off course that she'd placed her life in danger every day by staying with him.  "To be a father?  I mean, you wouldn't have come home…"

Logan grinned sheepishly.  "Pretty good.  I…ah…can't offer you a cigar or anything, but…"

"So, did Hiram get a proper name?  I mean, Hiram…where the hell does that come from?"  This time, it was Alec speaking.

"Long story," Logan responded, thinking that, in this case, the _real_ name of Fearless Fly was actually pretty apt.  Hiram had had an exciting entry to the world.  "And yes, Hiram has a proper name."

"Aren't you gonna tell us?"

Logan looked at the two men, a mischievous glint in his eye and said with deadly seriousness, "George Herbert Walker Cale…"

"Apparently, the last few days have scrambled Logan's brain," commented Alec.

"No, I just think he doesn't want to tell us."

Logan nodded.  "Now, Zack, you're obviously here at the crack of dawn for a reason."  Logan suddenly snapped into serious mode. 

"I need you to set up a couple of fake IDs.  By the way, after you guys left, one of the others led us to a bunker at the back of the complex and we found a male transgenic.  He's not in very good shape.  Not sure if he'll make it."

"Okay…"  Logan gently placed his coffee cup on the counter and pushed himself in the direction of the computer room.  There was a package on the desk next to his keyboard.  He pushed it out of the way and started the system up.  Zack and Alec had both followed him through.  "What do you need, Zack?"

-----------------------

"Good morning."  The woman's voice was overly cheery as she roughly dumped a dinner tray on the table, startling the baby, who pulled away in protest, and provoking an angry look from Max.  _Well, at least we know you can hear, little one,_ she thought.

Max restrained herself to saying, "Thanks," and sat the baby up, gently rubbing his back.  She realized that she'd taken in a lot more than she thought by observing Gem and her little girl and from the odd occasions she'd babysat the baby, born in the upper rooms of Jam Pony X-Press.  He burped loudly.  She grinned at the sound and settled him comfortably in the crook of her arm.  She took a quick peek under one of the metal lids on the tray to see what was on the menu, wrinkled her nose and sighed happily.  "Hospital food, just what a girl needs."

----------------------

"Thanks, Logan, and give my best to Max," Zack said, about to leave.

"Hang on a moment."  He turned back in the direction of the bedroom.  "Thanks for the loan."  He held out the borrowed shoes he'd worn for the last few days.

"Oh, you can keep them."  Zack looked at him sheepishly.  "They aren't mine.  I…ah…found them in the closet at the farmhouse."

Logan chuckled.  "Well, thanks all the same."

------------------------

Logan was alone in the apartment again.  He gazed out the big picture windows in the living room at the daytime view of Seattle, a soft expression on his face, idly tapping the wheel of his chair.  He'd eaten, showered, and puttered about the apartment for a couple of hours, and now he was just mulling over the last few days.  Considering all that could have gone wrong, he believed they'd been lucky to get off so lightly.  The captured transgenics were all safe; Max was safe; he was a dad…That thought brought a really soppy grin.  _A dad.  Me?_  He still wondered, in his more doubting moments, why Max was with him, why she hadn't chosen someone more like her.  He fondled the tiny jumpsuit he'd found in the kitchen, feeling the softness of the fabric, touching the tiny flight of ducks across the front.  He'd carried it with him to the windows, stretching it out along his thigh.  It was so tiny, so perfect, like the baby who would eventually wear it.  He'd held the child briefly last night, before Max chased him away, full of the pride of all new fathers.  He folded the jumpsuit and left it in the kitchen before grabbing his jacket and keys. 

He glanced at the exoskeleton. The box on his desk had contained the replacement chip, but there hadn't yet been time to effect any repairs.  There were more pressing things right now.  Max would be pleased at his shift in priorities, he guessed.  She didn't understand his fixation with walking, didn't care whether he was upright, towering above her, or whether she was the one who was upright towering above him.  It just didn't matter to her.

-----------------------

Logan heard the voices long before he reached Max's room.  The laughter and chatter carried down the corridor.  He pushed the door open on a roomful of people.  Original Cindy leaned against the foot of the bed.  Zack was gazing thoughtfully out the window while Krit looked over Syl's shoulder at the baby.  Max, curled up on the bed, looked on, smiling, while her sister held the infant carefully.  There was a large bunch of flowers on the nightstand with a card attached.  He strained to read it, but the distance was too great.

"If I'd know there was gonna be a party," he said, "I'd have brought beer and crackers."

Zack looked on indulgently and grinned.  "Okay, guys, we better get moving."  He crossed the room to Max and kissed her on the cheek.  "Take care, Max."

"You too, Zack," Max replied.  Syl, with some reluctance, handed back the baby.  "Take care, big sister," Max said, grasping her shoulder in a rough, one-handed embrace.

"You too, little sister," she replied with a smile.  Krit simply gave her a pat on the shoulder before following the other two in the direction of the door.

"Good luck, Zack," said Logan.

"There's no such thing as luck," Zack responded, giving his stock reply.

"Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity," Logan replied with a grin, earning an ironic nod in response from the X5. 

Cindy looked at Max with regret.  "Gotta go, sistah girl.  They're my ride back to Sector 5."

"Logan could take you."

Cindy looked at him.  "Na, you two need some time."

"Thanks for coming, OC."

"You just take care of your boys.  I'll see ya soon enough."

"Late, girl."  Max watched her go.

With the room emptied of bodies, Logan took the opportunity to move around to the other side of the bed.  He reached up and turned the card attached to the flowers, eyes widening in surprise at the name Reagan Ronald.  Shaking his head, he turned the card back under and reversed slightly, taking a position near the window.  Max slid down from the bed and gently settled the baby in the crook of his father's arm, making sure his head was supported, and, ignoring Logan's startled, almost scared, expression, she disappeared into the bathroom.  "I'd been waiting for them all to go," she said by way of explanation when she came out, flicking water from her hands.  She sat down on Logan's lap, settling herself with an arm around the back of his neck, and sighed in contentment.  "Alone at last."

"Yeah."  Logan kissed her hair.  "At last."

"So," she said.  "How's the wonkiness today?"

Logan shrugged.  "Still wonky."

Max snorted a laugh.  She reached her hand up and couldn't resist touching Logan's face – clean-shaven for the first time in days.  "Mmm, nice.  Smooth as silk, soft as a baby's…" She left the words unsaid, the faintest hint of a grin on her face.

"How are you feeling?"

"My hormones are racing a thousand miles an hour.  I'm up and down like a yoyo.  But now you're here, all things considered, I'm okay.  I heal fast, anyway."

"I know."

The baby stirred, scratching at air with delicate pink fingers tipped with tiny sharp nails that barely peeked out the top of the blue baby blanket in which he was wrapped.  He opened unfocused blue eyes and gazed up at his doting parents.

"Welcome to this broken world, Ben Jack Cale," said Max softly.

Logan gave a vaguely satisfied grin, and echoed her words, "Yeah, welcome to the broken world."

THE END…OR IS IT?

* * *


End file.
